A race full of obstacles
by rokeat
Summary: SEQUEL TO "A LONG RACE". Blaine and Sam are living together in their new apartment, happier than ever and surrounded by family and friends that love them. But sometimes life gets in the way and everything stops being so easy. SLASH Blam.
1. Chapter 1

_**A/N: **__Hey! I'm back! Yes, this is finally the sequel to my _A long race_ Blam story (beginning only a few weeks after the ending)! I'm not that happy with the title, so I might change it if a better one comes to my mind! :)_

_Warning: this first chapter is sooooo fluffy and cloying... but don't worry, angst will come soon enough. Otherwise it would be too boring, right?_

_Enjoy!_

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><p><strong>CHAPTER 1<strong>

"Will you stop fidgeting?" Sam asked his boyfriend, fondly shaking his head at him as they stood in front of Sam's family house, resting his hand on the shorter boy's shoulder for good measure. "You've been doing that since we got in the plane"

"I can't help it, I'm nervous" Blaine answered, stating the obvious, and Sam smiled warmly at him and put his arms around him for comfort.

"It's going to be okay, sweetie, I told you" he assured his boyfriend. "It's not like they're meeting you for the first time"

"They're meeting me for the first time as your boyfriend" Blaine reminded him.

"Last time I checked, you were the same person than before, and they already liked you then"

"Yeah, but now my status changed"

"Oh, you got promoted?" Sam joked, chuckling at the offended expression on his boyfriend when he stepped out of the embrace and playfully punched him on the chest.

"No, you idiot" Blaine answered, feigning annoyance even if he couldn't help a little smile breaking into his lips. "But I'm not just their son's best friend anymore, but the one person in the position to break his heart"

"And who's banging him practically every day" Sam added with a mischievous grin.

"Thank you, I was kind of hoping your parents wouldn't focus on that" Blaine answered, already blushing even if his in-laws weren't there to hear Sam's references to their sex-life.

"Relax, B, I'm serious" Sam answered, smiling comfortingly at him. "Remember that my mother thought we were already together the last times you visited. So no change for her, really"

"I know. Ugh, I just can't help it!" Blaine complained, bringing his hands to his face. "Be glad you won't have to go through that"

"Sweetheart, I would go through that a thousand times gladly, if that meant your parents were still in your life" Sam answered, completely honest, embracing Blaine strongly to his chest as he did every time Blaine's family appeared into one of their conversation, moved by a strong urge of protection.

"I know you would, Sam" Blaine assured him, letting himself enjoy the comfort of Sam's arms for a second. "That's why you are the best boyfriend ever"

"I try" Sam answered with a grin before letting go of his boyfriend. "And now smile and relax, ok?"

"Ok, I'll try. Just… hold my hand" Blaine requested, stretching his hand in front of him until Sam picked it up and entwined their fingers together.

"Gladly" Sam answered before giving Blaine's forehead a quick kiss and decidedly opening the front door of the house.

"Knock, knock!" Sam jokingly said as he poked his head round his parents' main door.

"Sam!" his mother happily yelled at seeing her son standing on her doorframe by surprise, and she jumped from the sofa to warmly embrace him.

Sam smiled at his mother's exuberant reaction, but even while in her arms, his hand was still strongly encased in his boyfriend's, who was awkwardly waiting outside the door, and Sam pulled him in the house next to him.

"Dwight! Come see who's here!" she yelled, directing her voice towards the stairs, before she finally let go of her son and turned towards the other boy. "Blaine" she sweetly greeted him too, and embraced him just as strongly as he had done with Sam.

"I hope we didn't get you in a bad time" Blaine apologized, only to be immediately dismissed by Mary.

"What? No, of course not, Blaine, it's always a good time to have you both here" Mary quickly put his mind at rest with a tender smile. Not for the first time, Blaine could see where Sam got his sweetness from.

"Still I wanted to warn you on advance, but Sam was so keen in surprising you…" Blaine explained, but his boyfriend quickly interrupted his apologies.

"Mum, will you make Blaine understand that he doesn't have to try so hard for you all to like him? He's been worrying sick for days, I've never seen him so nervous" Sam said good-naturedly, finally letting go of his hand to side-embrace him in a comforting gesture.

"Sam, there was no need to share that" Blaine gently reprimanded him, his face blushing with embarrassment.

"Oh, honey, of course you don't have to even try for us to like you. We already knew you and loved you even before you two got together, right? If anything, we will love you even more now" Mary tried to reassure him, only to be interrupted by her husband, who was already walking down the stairs.

"Of course, Blaine" Dwight added. "That's what families do, right?"

"Right" Blaine answered with an impossibly wide smile as Dwight came to them to embrace his son and then him.

"And where are the little monsters?" Sam asked, obviously referring to his adored little siblings.

"They are at school, but they should be getting home soon. Wait until they see you, they're going to be so happy" Mary answered, gently pushing the couple towards the sofa, where they sat side by side, Sam's parents in two armchairs in front of them.

"So what are you doing here?" Dwight asked. "Not that we aren't delighted, but we didn't know you were free"

"We thought it was the best time to come for a long weekend. I could easily ask for a day off and Blaine won't start rehearsing for a week. After that, I guess it's going to be madness for him" Sam explained in both their names, his eyes full of pride for his boyfriend's achievements.

"Oh yes! _Les Miserables_, Blaine!" Mary exclaimed, almost as proud as his son. "That's so great! Do you know how long it will be running?"

"Oh, not yet, but at least the whole season. After that, it will depend on how good it goes" Blaine answered, shrugging his shoulders modestly.

"Maybe we can find the time to go see you around Christmas, right, Dwight?" Mary suggested to his husband.

"Definitely! You don't know how much I've been showing off at the office about my son-in-law being on Broadway!" Blaine smiled shyly, and try not to dwell too much on how good and warm it felt to be called Mr. Evan's son-in-law so easily, but he could tell he was not succeeding when Sam's hand fell on his knee and squeezed it tenderly.

"In fact, we were hoping you could come for the big opening" Sam explained, trying to give his boyfriend a hand.

"Yeah, I'll get some tickets for my family, so I'd really like for you all to be there, if you could arrange it" Blaine added, looking apprehensively at them.

"We'd be so honored, sweetheart" Mary immediately agreed.

"We wouldn't miss it for the world"

"We brought some presents for everyone, by the way" Blaine announced, trying to get the focus out of him and pointing at their bags, which lay forgotten next to the door.

"Oh, Blaine, thank you so much, but you didn't have to" Mary answered, gratefully.

"Oh, no, it's from both of us" Blaine tried to explain, to no avail.

"Sam has never brought us presents before, we know who to thank for these ones" Dwight intervened, making all of them laugh.

"Hey!" Sam protested, but the proud smile that broke on his face at how good his family had already accepted Blaine in it clearly betrayed his true feelings.

The four of them spent a good while talking and getting up to date, and Sam was glad to see Blaine gradually relaxing in the comfortable and familiar atmosphere that had originated in the living room. In spite of Blaine's confident and extrovert appearance, Sam knew he was full of insecurities and had a big need of being accepted and loved. Of course he couldn't blame him, given the family he had grown with and all the bullying and rejection he had had to face in his young life. But even if Sam understood the roots of Blaine's self-esteem issues, that didn't make him worry less about them and didn't stop him from trying to make it better. And he knew that sharing his family with Blaine, making him feel like one of them, was the best way to show Blaine that he mattered. And judging by the bright smile Blaine was sporting at the moment after one of his father's silly jokes, it was going really good. So Sam rested his hand on Blaine's thigh and, when his gazes crossed for a second and Blaine smiled lovingly at him, Sam knew Blaine was aware of his worry of him, and he deeply appreciated it.

Suddenly the front door opened again, and the two remaining members of the family filled the space with noise even before noticing their brother was there.

"Sam!" Stacey was the first to notice, and she threw his backpack at the floor and ran to jump on his big brother's arms.

"Hey, little one!" Sam warmly greeted her, even if she was not that little anymore, with a big embrace until Stevie pushed her out of the way to embrace him too –though more calmly because, being 15 as he was, he wasn't supposed to get too excited about family, right? "Hey, Stevie! How's everything going?"

"Good! And I told you it's _Steve_ now. But hey, what are you doing here?" The younger boy asked, taking a chair to sit next to his brother.

"We thought it was time for a visit. And I'm so glad we did, a couple of weeks more and I might not have recognized you, you've grown so much!" Sam answered, fondly rubbing his little brother's knee.

Stevie –or Steve, as he liked to be called now– blushed, with a mixture of embarrassment and pride, and Sam laughed. It was good to be home! And as he turned around to compliment his sister too, he was not too surprised to see Stacey was closely embracing Blaine and, after that, she simply sat on his lap, obviously very happy to have them there.

"Hey!" Sam protested, playfully complaining and tickling her sides. "Why aren't you sitting here with me? Who's supposed to be your brother here?"

"Both of you from now on, right?" She answered knowingly, putting her arms around Blaine's neck, making the boy smile impossibly wide.

"Ok, you got me there" Sam answered good-naturally with a knowing wink at his boyfriend, and they all resumed their conversation.

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><p>After spending the afternoon on the swimming pool as a family and after the wonderful dinner that Mary threw in their honor –how could she do it, when she hadn't had the slightest idea they were going to come, was beyond anybody's understanding–, Blaine, feeling very grateful, decided to make himself useful and he volunteered to take care of the washing up. Mary was very quick to oppose to that, so in the end they agreed on doing it together, as the rest of the family quickly disappeared before they were assigned any other chore.<p>

"Not that I'm not glad for the company, sweetheart, but I told you, you don't need to try so hard" Mary insisted as they worked together.

"I'm not, really" Blaine answered with a chuckle. "It's just the right thing to do. After the wonderful dinner you threw for us out of nothing, the least I can do is help you with the dishes"

"You're such a kindhearted boy, Blaine"

"Oh, you want to talk" Blaine contradicted her with a warm smile. "You've made such an effort to include me in your family…"

"You're Sam's partner, Blaine, you didn't need _to be included_"

"See? You have a great family, Mary, and I can see it's mostly thanks to you. Sam is very fortunate to have a mother like you" Blaine honestly praised her.

"Well, he is, I hope he is aware of that"

"Of course he is" Blaine assured her with a laugh. "And if he forgets it, I'll make sure to remind him"

"Blaine, Sam told me about the difficult situation with your family. I hope you don't mind" Mary confessed, turning serious.

"No, of course not" Blaine answered with no hesitation. "You said we're family now, didn't you? So you should know everything that's important about me. I'm glad he told you"

"I wanted you to know that… you have us now, even if you don't have them" Mary told him, leaving the dishes for a moment so he could look at him intently. "I find it very hard to believe a parent could cut strings with his own child like that, especially if it's such a sweet and good boy like you are, but well… The thing is you're not alone anymore, ok? And the same goes for your brother, obviously, who I'm dying to know, by the way"

"Thank you so much" Blaine said, his voice shaking slightly with emotion as he embraced his mother-in-law in a rush of emotion. "You don't know how much this means to me after… after everything that happened with my parents. I really feel like I have parents again"

"And you do" she assured him, reciprocating the hug and motherly caressing the hair on the back of his head. "Now let this old woman finish with the dishes and go find your boyfriend, who I'm sure will be very glad to see you. I bet he's in the swimming pool, he used to love some swimming after dinner when he lived here"

"This is a beautiful house you have, Mary" Blaine answered when the embrace broke, changing the subject to stop himself from crying in front of his mother-in-law.

"Well, it's not really ours, just a place Dwight's company lent to us so we would move to Kentucky… But after what we went through some years ago, we couldn't be happier about it, let me tell you that"

"I'm glad it all worked for the best then" Blaine smiled.

"Now go" Mary ordered, playfully hitting him with the cloth in her hands.

"Ok, I'm going!" Blaine laughed over his shoulder, already walking out of the kitchen.

"Just don't let Stacey and Steve know you're on the swimming pool or you won't get rid of them!" Mary warned him and Blaine obeyed, suddenly feeling much in the need of spending some quality time with his dreamy boyfriend.

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><p>When Blaine approached the swimming pool, he had to smile at how diligently Sam was swimming from one end to the other of the small pool, moving graciously in the water as if he had been born in it. Blaine knew Sam still cared a lot about keeping himself in shape and taking care of his body, though he was relieved he didn't seem to have body issues anymore, as he had had back in high school. To Blaine, Sam would always be perfect whatever his shape was, but if it was important to Sam to take care of it, then Blaine would support him, as he always did.<p>

Blaine walked the remaining steps towards the pool and sat on its edge, sinking his feet in the water and marveling at how good its temperature felt in that late Summer night. Sam was still swimming from the other end of the pool, so he patiently waited until he came to him and discovered him there.

Sam didn't take his head off the water until it was touching Blaine's legs, but it was obvious he had already seen him by how his fingers curled around Blaine's ankles.

"I was so hoping you would join me" Sam said as he came to the surface, jumping a little so his crossed arms and his head could rest on Blaine's lap.

"Sam, your drenching me!" Blaine protested without much enthusiasm, his hands moving to gently caress Sam's wet hair.

"So? You're going to get wet anyway when you get in, right?" Sam asked, almost purring at the pleasure Blaine's fingers provided on his scalp.

"Well, I wasn't going to get in the pool, I just came here to watch my perfectly beautiful boyfriend exercising" Blaine explained with a mischievous smile. "It's quite a distracting image, you know"

"But B, you have to get in! The water is perfect and well, I can think of other very distracting activities to do underwater" Sam suggested seductively, though it didn't elicit the wished effect and Blaine laughed wholeheartedly.

"You pervert, do I have to remind you we're at your parents' house? And besides, I already had a shower, I don't want to get my hair full of chlorine again"

"Blaine, pleeeease! I so want to have a bath in the moonlight with you! I'll wash your hair myself after it if you want to"

"No, thanks, you know I love you but I wouldn't trust you with my hair" Blaine joked, this time being him making his boyfriend laugh.

"Come on, I'm just trying to be romantic! I want to kiss your wet skin while it is reflecting the moonlight and see your gorgeous eyes sprinkling with the reflection of the stars" Sam tried.

"You just want to get laid" Blaine contradicted him, and Sam laughed unashamedly.

"Ok, that too. But just because I love you" Sam insisted with his best version of his puppy eyes that he had copied from Blaine himself.

Blaine sighed fondly and Sam smiled at seeing he had won that round. He removed himself from Blaine's lap so the brunette could take off his t-shirt, and waited for him on the water. Blaine simply let himself fall from the edge of the pool and it was obvious how much Sam was wanting him there by the way he enveloped him in his arms even before Blaine touched the bottom of the pool.

"Hey you" Sam said once they were face to face, lost in each other's arms and eyes.

"Hey, yourself" Blaine answered, equally loving, as he captured Sam's lips in a lazy kiss.

"See? Tell me this isn't romantic" Sam asked, obviously in a loving mood, as he rested his forehead against his boyfriend's, their bodies tightly wrapped around each other.

"I never said it wasn't, I just didn't want to have to shower again" Blaine answered, resting his face on Sam's shoulder for closeness and to gently nibble at his neck, though Sam's wet hair kept getting in the way. "Are you planning on growing your hair long again?" Blaine asked, idly playing with some locks of that hair he loved so much.

"I've been thinking about it, to be honest. Would you like it?" Sam asked, removing his own hair from his neck to allow Blaine's lips the access to properly kiss it, which he quickly did.

"I don't mind, you look amazingly gorgeous however your hair is at any time" Blaine honestly answered, and he could tell his comment was appreciated by how Sam's grip around his waist got tighter.

"Ok, first? You're the sweetest thing" Sam responded, tenderly caressing the top of Blaine's head, still resting on his shoulder. "But second, even if you like my hair however it is, did you like it when it was long?"

"I really did. Your pony tail was… very seductive, that's for sure" Blaine confessed against the skin on Sam's throat, just before gently sucking on the blond's Adam's apple until he moaned.

"Then pony tail again it is" Sam confidently decided before lifting Blaine's face from his shoulder to be able to ravish his mouth, holding him so close to his body that there was literally no space between their colliding chests.

"Someone was a little anxious" Blaine chuckled when Sam started kissing his neck with a passion.

"You've got no idea" Sam replied, his voice full of lust as he cornered Blaine against the pool wall.

Sam only took a moment to memorize the moonlight reflected on his boyfriend's expressive eyes before he captured his lips in a slow and loving kiss this time, sighing in appreciation as Blaine's arm surrounded his neck. They kept the slow and sweet rhythm for a couple of minutes, until Sam deepened the kiss and motioned for Blaine's legs to lift and curl around his waist, while his own arms held Blaine possessively around his lower torso. Even in the coolness of the water, he could feel a sweet but powerful warmth spreading all along his body, and he guessed Blaine must be feeling it too considering the passion with which he was responding to Sam's kisses. It wasn't until one of Sam's hands started wandering under the waistband of Blaine's swimsuit, that the latter gently broke their kiss and breathlessly rested their foreheads together.

"Sam, your siblings could walk on us any minute. We should keep this in a PG level" he explained, smiling at the pout that appeared on his boyfriend's face.

"I bet they've been sleeping for hours, they're still so young" Sam answered, lifting his face to capture Blaine's lips again, though the latter avoided him with a turn of his face, his smile so tender it was impossible not to reciprocate it.

"Sam, they're 12 and 15, they're not that young anymore" Blaine reminded him, but this time he didn't even try to avoid Sam's lips when they searched for his and let himself get lost in the sensations of Sam's hands avidly exploring his body.

"Water battle!" a voice broke their silence, making both of them jump of their skin and stop their loving ministrations, and soon Stacey's voice and laughter joined Steve's and their footsteps running towards them made it clear for them that they weren't going to get any more pool loving action that night.

"Sorry" Sam mumbled, resting his forehead on Blaine's shoulder apologetically, before resting a butterfly kiss on his naked skin there and letting go of him before the kids got to jump on the pool.

"It's okay, love" Blaine answered good-naturally, gently caressing Sam's hair one last time.

They didn't have the time to cover their faces before two splashes of water hit them and suddenly both kids were swimming towards them. Steve and Sam quickly engaged in a wild water fight –damn, Blaine was right, Steve was not a little kid anymore who Sam could easily handle anymore–, while Stacey got to Blaine and jumped on his back for a piggyback ride, to which Blaine happily complied. Not the kind of fun Sam had in mind when he made him go into the pool, but it was still nice enough.

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><p>Next day was Saturday, so no one was in a lot of hurry to get up. Blaine, though, had never been a heavy sleeper and after trying to fall asleep again even if Sam was lying practically on top of him, soon after dawn he decided to extricate from Sam's octopus embrace and make it downstairs for some quiet time.<p>

He had been reading in the sofa for a short time when Stacey appeared in the living room. With her eyes still puffy and her hair all funnily ruffled from her sleep, she looked like Sam so much it was almost painful.

"Hey, sweetie" Blaine immediately greeted her with a smile.

"Hi, Blaine" she answered, coming into the living room. "Mind if I switch on the TV?"

"Of course not" he immediately answered, and he closed his book to give his sister-in-law the attention he deserved, and he raised the thin blanket covering his legs for her to get under it too. "Do you want to join me?"

Her only answer was to smile and she immediately complied, snuggling on Blaine's chest. That immediate trust and love for physical affection was another trait she obviously shared with her oldest brother, Blaine thought with a smile.

She had been lazily changing the channels, making a small conversation with Blaine every now and then, when the older boy noticed she looked pretty serious.

"You ok?" he asked after a couple of minutes. "You seem upset. I thought you'd be happy to have your big brother back for a couple of days"

"And I am" she was quickly to reply. "But… I was thinking about something that happened to me yesterday"

"Care to share?" Blaine offered, and when she raised her face to look at him, he smiled encouragingly at her, both of them oblivious to Sam's presence in the stairway. Having woken up alone, he had immediately gotten up in search of his boyfriend, but he decided to wait so as not to interrupt what it seemed like a serious conversation.

"I told my friend that my brother is dating a boy and she said that's wrong" she confessed after a second, deeply troubled.

"Did she?" Blaine asked, frowning at the upcoming conversation. Up until then, he had worried about how Sam's family would take the fact he was now dating a boy, but he had never thought about the consequences it might have for his siblings.

"Yeah, she said Sam is disgusting" Stacey answered, and Sam flinched at the sadness in her voice from where he was listening.

"And what do you think about it?" Blaine asked, trying to keep his tone neutral so Stacey would be comfortable to talk.

"I think she's wrong, because if she knew Sam she would see he isn't disgusting at all and he's the best big brother there is" Stacey answered, and both Sam and Blaine sighed in relief at her strong opinion.

"You're right, Stacey" Blaine agreed immediately. "Sam is the best man on the face of the Earth and nothing will change that, not who he dates and definitely not the words of people who don't even know him"

"Why do people bother about things like that?" she asked, totally confused.

"Some people are just ignorant"

"What's that?"

"It means that they don't know a lot of things" Blaine tried to explain. "Just because it was seen as a bad thing for a long time, they don't take the time to really think of their reasons to hate it. For them it's easier to hate than to try and understand and they teach their kids that, like your friend"

"So she's just ignorant?" she asked, and Blaine smiled fondly at her, squeezing her against his chest.

"Probably. It's not even her fault, she's just being raised to think like that. Not like you, who have the most wonderful parents and brothers that teach you to love and accept everyone. Let me ask you something: does it bother you that Sam is dating me?"

"No" Stacey was quick to answer, and Sam smiled at his sister's stubbornness.

"At all?" Blaine insisted, just to make sure.

"No. I like you better than any girlfriend Sam has ever brought home, none of them had any time to listen and play and talk to me like you do. And you make Sam smile much more than them, so how can that be wrong?" she explained, and Blaine was surprised at her wisdom, even at such a young age.

"Aw, Stacey, you're such a sweetheart" Blaine embraced her strongly to him, resting a kiss on the top of her head.

"I love it that you get to be my brother" she confessed, taking the time to enjoy Blaine's embrace.

"And I love I got a little sister to spoil, you know" Blaine replied, feeling very moved.

"Well, well, well" Sam happily announced his presence when he finally made all the way downstairs and to the living room. "I feel so excluded right now" he joked, pointing at the other two, making both Stacey and Blaine chuckle.

"It's your own fault, for being a sleepy head" Stacey answered, though she moved from Blaine's arms to closely embrace his brother.

"And here I was, thinking Blaine and I could take you and Stevie on a picnic to that park you love so much today"

"Yes!" she said, enthusiastically jumping up and down.

"But if you're going to be so ungrateful…"

"I won't, I promise. You're the best brother ever!" she yelled, jumping again to embrace her brother. "I love you!"

"I love you too, princess" Sam answered, more lovingly this time. "Now go and get ready, we'll have breakfast as soon as Stevie is up and then we'll get going"

"Ok!" she agreed happily, but she made a last stop at her way out to embrace Blaine. "Thank you, Blaine"

"You're welcome, sweetheart" he answered.

As soon as the little girl was out of the room, Sam turned to his boyfriend and leant his head to the side while he smiled tenderly at him.

"What?" Blaine asked, reciprocating the smile.

"I love you so much" Sam answered, and he lifted Blaine's legs from the sofa to put them on his own lap as he sat beside him and gave him quick peck on the lips.

"I love you too, but… what is this all about?"

"I just needed to tell you" Sam answered, shrugging his shoulders.

"Ok. Be my guest whenever you feel like it" Blaine answered, hooking his arm around Sam's to bring him closer to him.

"Stacey is right, you know" Sam pointed out.

"Oh, so you were listening?" Blaine mockingly reproached him.

"Obviously"

"And what was she right about exactly?"

"About how you make me smile more than any previous relationship I've had" Sam confessed, devotedly kissing Blaine's forehead.

"That's because I get you better than they did" Blaine replied.

"Well that and because you're the most amazing human being that ever existed. Thank you for taking the time to make Stacey feel better and understand" Sam explained, more seriously this time.

"Come on, Sam, you know I love her like crazy" Blaine answered, dismissing the appraisal.

"And thank you for that too"

"She is like a small version of you, how could I not love her?"

"Come here, my sweet boy" Sam commanded him before putting his arms around him and bringing him closer to capture his lips in a slow kiss.

"Minor walking down the stairs, please stop any adult-rated displays!" Stevie's voice resounded around the living room, making the two lovers laugh in spite of themselves as they broke their kiss.

"Stevie, one of these days…" Sam jokingly threatened him before giving Blaine a last peck on his lips and standing up to pursue his brother around the room.

"It's Steve! And hey, if you didn't want me to interrupt why did you send Stacie to get me up?" Steve protested as he ran away from his brother, moving some light pieces of furniture between them to avoid Sam catching him.

"I didn't! I clearly told her "as soon as Stevie's up", not to get you up!" Sam contradicted him just before tripping over a chair and sending it down with a loud noise.

"Can't a man have a little sleep on his day off in this house?" they heard Dwight yell good-naturedly from upstairs, and the three boys started laughing at the absurdity of it all. Yes, Blaine thought. Even with all the anxiety that meeting Sam's family as his boyfriend for the first time had created for him, it had been worth it. And he knew Sam thought the same when his boyfriend stopped on his chase for his brother for a second to wink knowingly at him. Well worth it.

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN: **So tell me, is this still interesting enough to continue?_


	2. Chapter 2

_**A/N: **__Hey! So as I said, I changed the title, I hope it doesn't generate too much confusion!_

_I reeeeally struggled with this chapter... The problem is I don't have such a clear story line as I had with my previous story... I mean, I know what I want it to happen (I have two entwined plots very clear in my mind), but they are not that well planned as the other one was... I hope it doesn't become a problem as the story goes on!_

_Anyway, as always..._

**_Bourne:_**_ Yes, I said I'd do it and I did, yay! i'm so glad you like the way I describe the characters, because it's the most important thing for me, so you've made me very happy!__ I'll try to keep the fluff coming, I know it won't be difficult ;) Thank you much!_

**_Me-Me157: _**_Thanks, honey! Yes, I felt kind of bad I had neglected the Evans family on the prequel, so they are going to be around much more in this one! I love Mary Evans! Hehehe, so glad you noticed about Sebastian ;) Thank you so much!_

**_Broody Sunshine:_**_ Hehehe, I'm planning to! :) Thanks!_

**_Jov:_**_ Hahaha, thanks! _

**_Guest: _**_Awww, thank you so much! :)_

**_Raiderva: _**_Yes, I really needed to continue with this timeline, I needed to explore more of them as a couple. I'm so glad you find it fun to read, because I'm a pretty boring person! Just wait for the drama ;) Thank you so much!__  
><em>

* * *

><p><strong><em>AN2: _**_By the way,_****_I was very amused by how everyone assumed I'm going to break them up on some point! When I talked about angst and drama, it didn't necessarily mean it would be between them... It could also be around them, you know? :)_

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><p><strong>CHAPTER 2<strong>

Sam finished giving the last touches to a drawing that could very well be the cover of his next _Nightbird and the Blond Chameleon_'s number. Or it could do a nice poster, if he had to be honest with himself. Maybe he could have it copied in poster size and framed and convince Blaine to hang it on their living room. Who was he trying to fool, as soon as Sam suggested it Blaine would gladly agree, it's not like he needed to convince his boyfriend. Apart from the fact that for Blaine it was as difficult to deny something to his boyfriend as it was the other way around, they were both very much in love with the two superheroes and with what they represented. After all, their common liking for comics had been one of the main reasons to make them realize they could be good buddies. And they came even closer through their numerous reunions for the Superhero club they founded back at McKinley, where they would get their alter egos to life and resolve cases together. So yes, having that poster on their wall could be a good idea, after all.

When the first number was finished and printed in his hands, Sam was embarrassed to admit he had been moved close to tears –the pride in Blaine's eyes hadn't make it any easier, of course–. Finally he was becoming the author he had always dreamt to be. Sure, he had to publish it with his own money –and Blaine's, obviously, as he had been the one to push him from the beginning– and had to sell it through the internet. But they had almost recouped their investment by then, and Sam was hopeful the second number would be even better received, and someone would decide to invest in the series sooner or later. If Blaine's absolute trust in him was any indicator of his chances, he would have an investor very soon, he was sure.

Talking about his dreamy boyfriend, Sam smiled as he heard the door to their apartment close, meaning Blaine was back from his rehearsal. It was the last day of his first week on the project, and Sam knew it had been a very strenuous and hard week, with Blaine trying to adjust to Broadway's working without any previous experience. But Sam trusted him and knew he could make it, even if he had to force him to let go of all his insecurities with him at home and try and make them better through kind words. And kisses. Lots of kisses.

"Hey" Blaine greeted him as he poked his head around the office's door, and the fact he hadn't shouted his usual _honey, I'm home _as he arrived to the apartment they shared immediately alerted Sam something was not right.

"Hey" he answered, almost like a question, and patiently waited until Blaine took his jacket off and carelessly left it over the backrest of the sofa-bed they kept in the office.

"What is this? It looks gorgeous" Blaine commented, walking behind Sam and bending over to kiss his cheek as he looked over his shoulder at the drawing he had just finished.

"I thought this would do as the cover of the second number" Sam explained as he raised a hand to tenderly caress Blaine's cheek, still on his shoulder.

"You know what? It would do great as a poster for our living room" Blaine pointed out, and Sam had to smile at how similarly their minds worked sometimes.

He was going to comment that to this boyfriend when he noticed Blaine seemed pretty deflated, so instead Sam moved his chair away from the table and grabbed Blaine's hand to pull him in front of him. He then grabbed Blaine's waist to make him sit on his lap, so Blaine immediately complied and snuggled on Sam's chest.

"What's wrong, sweetheart?" Sam asked, tucking some of Blaine's curls behind his ear in a tender gesture.

"Apparently it was mother's day yesterday" Blaine suddenly stated, as if that would explain everything.

"I know" Sam answered, totally confused.

"Then why didn't you remind me of it?"

"Why?"

"Because with the rehearsals and the anxiety they cause and everything I totally forgot about it!" Blaine confessed. "I wanted to get your mother something"

"You wanted to give my mother a gift?" Sam asked, really moved at Blaine's intentions.

"Of course. She treats me like a son, doesn't she? She is like a mother to me and I wanted to thank her. I didn't even call her" Blaine regretted, his face getting sadder by the minute.

"Hey, it's okay" Sam answered, squeezing Blaine around his middle, trying to cheer him up. "I made a flower shop from Kentucky send her a bunch of flowers from the two of us and I sent her all your love when I spoke to her"

"Really?" Blaine asked, his voice full of relief as he put his arms around his boyfriend's shoulders in a tight embrace. "You're the best, Sam"

"Only because you deserve it" Sam answered with a kiss to Blaine's cheek, as his arms stroke Blaine's back up and down in an attempt of comfort.

"But why didn't you tell me?" Blaine asked, with no trace of reproach in his voice.

"Because I know it's such a touchy issue for you… I didn't want to remind you about your mother and make you sad" Sam answered honestly.

"I really don't deserve someone who cares about me and takes care of me like you do, Sam" Blaine answered with a fond smile as he looked intently at his boyfriend, always amazed at how much he knew him and how much he took care of every little detail to protect him.

"Yes, you do" Sam answered, cupping Blaine's cheek to keep the eye contact. "I'm only sad you don't get that from your family too, except for Cooper"

"You want to know something?" Blaine suddenly asked.

"Of course"

"I spent the whole afternoon contemplating giving my mother a call"

"You did?" Sam asked, only slightly surprised –it was not that unusual for his boyfriend to get into one of those sentimental and nostalgic moods when he felt he needed to repair every failure in his life.

"Yeah. I know we never had the easiest relationship, especially after I came out, but I still miss her sometimes" Blaine confessed, lowering his gaze.

"And are you going to call her?" Sam asked.

"What should I do?" Blaine asked back, lifting his face to look trustingly at his boyfriend again.

"I can't tell you that, sweetie" Sam lamented, his fingers once again idly playing with some curls on the side of Blaine's head. "You've got to do what you heart tells you to do"

"Would you think I'm a bad person if I didn't?" Blaine asked almost whispering, as if he was afraid of Sam's answer.

"No, of course not, why would I?" Sam answered, his brow furrowing at the absurdity of him considering Blaine any less than perfect.

"Because I know how important your mother is to you"

"Yes, because she's always been there for me, Blaine" Sam tried to explain. "If she had done to me what your mother did to you… I think I'd never forgive her, to be honest"

"So you think it's okay I still feel so hurt after four years?"

"I think that with each year that passes in which she doesn't make any move towards bringing you back into her life you are more and more entitled to feel hurt, honey" Sam answered, biting his tongue so as not to say how he himself was never going to forgive her for causing his boyfriend so much pain.

"Even if it was my father throwing me out of his house, my mother's silence felt like a bigger betrayal, you know?" Blaine explained, and Sam nodded in understanding. What happened that time four years ago was a very painful thing for Blaine, and they hardly ever talked about it, so Sam was more than willing to listen. "I always knew my father was so ashamed of me, but I thought that at least my mother loved me"

"Oh, love…" Sam lamented, once again squeezing Blaine closer to his chest in protection. "Do you want to know how I really feel about this?"

"Yes" Blaine almost begged him to share his thoughts with him, as his hand moved to the back of Sam's neck to caress the hair falling there.

"Well, if they are able to hurt you so much, and they can't see what a wonderful man they have as a son, they deserve all your resentment. And mine too, even if I barely know them"

"But you know what? Not being loved by your parents become a lot less painful when you have the best and most gorgeous boyfriend in the world" Blaine said with a grateful smile and a quick peck to Sam's lips.

"Maybe that's why I love you so much. It's the universe's way to balance it" Sam explained with a smile of his own. "And it's not only me, you know that. Do you know what my mother told me yesterday when I called her and sent her your love? She told me that the other day someone asked her how many children did she have. And do you know what she answered? Four. Just like that, it came out of her mouth without even thinking. So maybe she didn't give birth to you, but you have a mother that loves you to no end, sweetheart"

"See? That's why I wanted to get her something for mother's day" Blaine confessed, blushing slightly at all the praising he was receving.

"Oh, she knows you love her, don't worry" Sam assured him before urging Blaine to stand and pulling him towards the couch. "Come"

Sam lay down on his back on the sofa without letting go of Blaine's hand so when he was comfortable enough, he motioned for Blaine to join him for a little cuddling –which Sam knew by now always made wonders for Blaine's sad moods–. Blaine smiled and immediately complied, so he soon was lying next to Sam –though given the confined space of the sofa, he was lying practically on top of him, something which didn't bother any one of them–. And when he laid his head on Sam's chest and the blond's hand started massaging his scalp, he literally purred in bliss.

Sam smiled at his lover's predictable reactions. There were few things that Sam loved more than hearing the sounds Blaine made when he let go of himself; or better yet, eliciting them. That's why Sam had brought him to lie down next to him, so he could help him relax and forget about everything that wasn't them. But the silence and the still present tension on Blaine's muscles were clear indications that there was something still troubling his mind.

"There is something else going on in that little head of yours, isn't it?" Sam asked, not stopping his loving ministrations even for one second.

"Maybe" Blaine confessed, and the joking tone of his voice immediately eased Sam's worried, for at least it didn't seem to be too bad.

"Is it about us?" Sam asked, although by the way Blaine had nestled against his chest, he could already guess the answer.

"No, of course not" Blaine answered, as if it was the most stupid idea he had ever heard. "With us everything is beyond perfect"

"I thought that too" Sam agreed, teasingly tickling Blaine's side with his other hand. "Then… does it have to do with any of our friends?" Sam continued with their little game.

"Nope"

"Then it has to be about the rehearsals"

Blaine's frown and lack of words were the only answer Sam needed.

"What is wrong with the rehearsals, honey?" Sam encouraged his boyfriend to share his thoughts.

"I'm the only one there without any experience" Blaine complained, pouting as if he was a spoilt child.

"So?" Sam asked, trying hard not to smile at Blaine's childish antics.

"It's very embarrassing!" Blaine explained, lifting his head from Sam's chest to look at him. "They have to explain how everything works every time we start with something new! They must think I'm so pathetic!"

"Ok, first things first: are they kind to you when they explain everything to you, as you say?" Sam tried to reason with him.

"Yeah"

"Then I don't think it's such a big deal to them, or they'd be annoyed, right? I guess it's not the first time they've had to work with an inexperienced actor"

"I guess" Blaine conceded, still not completely convinced.

"And let me ask you something: did you pull any strings to get this part?"

"Of course not! I didn't know anybody in there!" Blaine answered, almost indignant.

"Then they picked you because you were the best for the part. Experienced or not, they considered you were good enough to play next to the all the others. If they trust you and think you can do it, and they have done tons of plays before and know what they're talking about, why can't you?" Sam tried to make him understand, caressing his cheek with his knuckles for good measure.

"You know, when you put it that way, I'm so tempted to believe you…" Blaine relented, a smile cracking on the corner of his lips.

"You should be proud you've gotten such an important role on your first Broadway show! Not everyone starts like this, you know" Sam insisted, his eyes full of pride for his boyfriend.

"I guess you're right" Blaine finally admitted, once against resting the side of his face against the chest that he loved so much. "After all, Enjolras is the one who carries the full weight of the revolution in the play, he's such an important character"

"And for my part I'm so happy Enjolras doesn't have any romantic interest. I'm not sure I'm ready yet to see you kiss someone who isn't me, even if I know it's fake" Sam joked, but Blaine again lifted his face to look him in the eye.

"But if my career keeps moving on, it will happen sooner or later. Is it going to become an issue or…?" Blaine asked, completely serious, and Sam had to snort at his innocence.

"You can't still tell when I'm joking, my silly boy?" he asked, tickling Blaine's sides until Blaine was able to grab his wrists and hold them above Sam's head as he straddled him –Sam obviously let him win, considering he was stronger than Blaine, but the curly-haired boy didn't complain; instead, he lowered his face to capture Sam's lips in a seductive kiss that had both of them moaning before it even broke.

"Who are you calling _silly_?" Blaine demanded as he attacked his boyfriend's exposed neck with willing lips.

"I don't remember" Sam mumbled, lost in a world of pleasure as Blaine sucked on his sensitive skin, no doubt leaving a mark that would not be easy to hide that night. Wait. That night. They had plans that night. Surprise plans. "You know what?" he suddenly said, extricating his arms out of Blaine's grip to put a hand to his chest and stop his loving actions. "I feel like boasting about my beautiful boyfriend tonight, let's go somewhere nice"

"Now?" Blaine asked, completely dumbfounded at the interruption, and Sam was close to change his mind as he looked at Blaine's adorable confused face and his perfect kiss-swollen lips.

"Of course now, it's been ages since the last time we went out for dinner" Sam insisted, lifting his upper body until he was sitting, so Blaine was forced to move a bit away from him –though he remained straddling his lap.

"I don't know… I've been so busy lately I feel like I haven't seen you in weeks. Why don't we take advantage of our free time and spent a lazy and hot evening at home?" Blaine suggested, his lips moving dangerously close to Sam's, but the latter moved his face to the side to avoid them.

"I can't believe I'm going to refuse that, because you know that's like my favorite plan in the world…" Sam lamented. "But I must insist to go out"

"Why?" Blaine asked in utter confusion.

"It was supposed to be kind of a surprise, I guess, but Tina called and asked us to meet the gang on that new disco they opened and of which everybody is talking about" Sam confessed, knowing there was no other way Blaine was going to be convinced to leave the comfortableness of their apartment otherwise. "You know, to celebrate your first week on Broadway"

"Oh" Blaine exclaimed, obviously deflated.

"And I told her we'd be there, I thought you'd be in the mood to have some fun with our friends and get all worrying thoughts out of your head. I'm sorry" Sam explained, leaning his head on Blaine's chest in apology.

"No, it's okay, love" Blaine immediately reassured him, his face sporting an honest smile once again. "Although I would have preferred to spend the night with just you, it will be nice to catch up with Tina and everyone. It's been ages since we did that!"

"I'm glad you feel like that" Sam answered, pleased with Blaine's enthusiasm.

"But we still have some minutes to spare so we can finish our business, right?" Blaine suggested, gently pushing Sam so he would lie on his back again.

"Not really, we should start getting ready for…" Sam started to explain, but he lost his voice when Blaine's experienced lips starting tracing a path down his chest as his fingers unbuttoned his shirt ahead of them.

"Well, they can wait a while. The party is for me, after all, isn't it?" Blaine insisted, as his tongue was added to his work on Sam's skin, making the latter shiver in anticipation.

"I guess" Sam surrendered, gulping as Blaine breathed teasingly against his navel.

"No, you're right, we shouldn't keep them waiting" Blaine suddenly said and with a mischievous smile he jumped from his astounded boyfriend and went to the bedroom to get changed.

"What? You're going to leave me like this?" Sam energetically protested, but Blaine's laughter was the only answer he received. He shook his head with a smile in spite of himself and was about to follow his boyfriend when the latter's voice reached him from the bathroom.

"I'm going to have a shower! And I'm leaving the door unlocked, just so you know!"

Sam openly chuckled this time and hurried to make the most of the little time they had.

* * *

><p>Blaine pretended to be surprised when Sam and he went into the fancy restaurant Tina had picked –a few minutes late, of course–, and she, Mike, Artie and Mercedes were already there. They all had kind words of pride and encouragement for him, and he had to admit they spent an enjoyable evening together. Apart from Sam –and Cooper, through the distance–, Blaine got his strength and confidence from his friends, and it was very important for him that they were being so supportive to him.<p>

So when the dinner was over and the night was still young, none of them –not even Blaine at this point– felt like going home and, as Tina had planned, they headed up to that new place which was so in fashion and quickly became the kings and queens of the dance floor. After all, Mike and Blaine were incredible dancers, and none of the others wanted to be left behind.

After a couple of minutes of dancing with his beloved Tina, Blaine turned towards his boyfriend, who was looking at his every move as if he was enchanted, and seductively rubbed himself against Sam's chest until he felt the blond's arms closing around his waist, bringing him even closer to him as he rocked them together in time with the music.

"Are you having fun?" Sam asked, although by the happy expression on Blaine's face, he could guess the answer on his own.

"I am" Blaine answered, putting his arms around Sam's shoulders and kissing his lips with fervor. "Thank you for bringing me"

"Thank you for letting me bring you" Sam contradicted him, reciprocating Blaine's kiss with equal passion, their bodies dancing together in a very seductive way.

"I'm going to grab a drink" Blaine shouted at his boyfriend's ear to make himself heard above all the noise after making out for a couple of minutes. "Do you want something?"

"A beer" Sam answered, taking advantage of their embrace to shamelessly squeeze Blaine's backside before he extricated himself from Sam's arms.

"Sam!" Blaine protested, playfully smacking his arm as he moved away from him, but it was obvious he was not offended by the wide grin breaking into his lips.

"Sorry, just a reflex" Sam excused himself with a proud smile as Blaine shook his head at him fondly and started walking towards the bar.

Sam watched his boyfriend as he tried to make his way amongst the people. He looked radiant that night, with that green shirt that Sam loved so much because it accentuated his eyes, and those tight jeans that fitted his cute butt so well. And he seemed totally relaxed and careless as he had fun with his friends. Yes, Sam thought with a smile, he would have to thank Tina later for orchestrating that night out for Blaine.

What Sam didn't know was that another pair of eyes that wasn't his were also following Blaine's every step towards the bar, fascinated by his moves and by how little he had changed over the years. Blaine looked as handsome and sexy as he did all those years ago when they met. He hadn't stopped thinking about Blaine all that time and he still wanted him at all costs, and this time he wasn't going to ruin it with clumsy moves and backfired jokes; this time he was going to make things right, Sebastian Smythe thought with a smile as he started following Blaine towards the bar.

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN: **Wow! Is this bad news? We'll see ;)_


	3. Chapter 3

_As always..._

**_ehrl-tree3: _**_thank you! :)_

**_Jov:_**_ Hahaha, I don't know if I should be worried you didn't say what I am :) I don't think you should be scared about Sebastian, though (or shouldn't you?). Thanks!_

**_Guest: _**_Hahaha, well Sebastian is kind of a psycho, isn't he? At least he could be considered as a stalker! Thank you so much!_

* * *

><p><strong>CHAPTER 3<strong>

"Excuse me" Sebastian said in his most polite of tones as he tapped his fingers on Blaine's shoulder.

Blaine, who was leaning over the bar waiting for some waiter to take up his command, turned around at the contact and his face turned into shock at seeing who was standing in front of him.

"Sebastian?" Blaine asked, tentatively, because right, he could see it was Sebastian, but his presence there was so unexpected and out of place that he was having trouble to believe it.

"Hey, Killer" Sebastian answered with a smug half-grin, confirming that yes, he was indeed the Sebastian Blaine knew so well.

Not really knowing how to act, as his relationship with Sebastian had been so full of ups and downs through the years, Blaine finally decided to go for a quick hug as his usual impeccable manners kicked in, trying to ignore how Sebastian clung more to him than he had expected.

"What are you doing here?" Blaine asked after he extricated himself from Sebastian's arms.

"Well, it's the most in fashion place in New York right now, isn't it?" Sebastian answered with his usual cockiness.

"No, I mean in New York. Are you visiting someone or…?"

"I live here now"

"Really?" Blaine asked, utterly surprised. Of course they had never kept in contact after high school, but they still had mutual friends from Dalton and he thought he should have heard about that.

"Yeah. Hey, there is too much noise here to talk, mind to join me near the wall?" Sebastian asked, casually closing his fingers around Blaine's bicep to pull him in that direction before he could refuse.

"Mm… sure" Blaine answered, letting himself be moved because flatly refusing would be a very rude movement; after all, Sebastian only wanted to talk and they had been friends once.

Sam had taken advantage of his boyfriend's absence to go to the bathroom –that way, he would only have to separate from him once–, but when he made his way back towards his friends he was surprised Blaine wasn't back from the bar yet.

"Hey, where's Blaine?" Sam asked Tina, who gave a surprised look around.

"I don't know, I thought he was with you" she replied, not too worried.

"No, I went to the restroom while he went to get some drinks, but that was a while ago" Sam explained, knowing it was stupid to worry about his adult boyfriend in a place so full of people, but not being able to help it.

"Well, there's a lot of people in the bar, and he is small, he must be having trouble getting spotted" Tina joked, glad to be able to elicit a chuckle from his friend.

"I'm telling him you said that" Sam joked back, even if his eyes kept searching for his boyfriend through the masses of people.

"I'm sure he'll be here in a minute, don't worry" Tina tried to reassure him, friendly patting his forearm.

"Who's worrying? I just want my beer" Sam joked, but he knew he was not fooling either one of them.

"So how is everything going? Trent said something about you being on Broadway!" Sebastian commented, his voice full of admiration.

"Well, we just started rehearsing but… yeah" Blaine answered shyly, not wanting to sound too full of himself.

"That's amazing! Not that I'm surprised, of course, I always said you are sex on a stick and sing like a dream, remember?" Sebastian flirted unashamedly as he started cornering Blaine towards the wall.

"Yeah, vividly" Blaine answered with mild sarcasm, as he started feeling uncomfortable at how close Sebastian was standing and how he didn't even seem to notice he was invading his personal space. "And what are you doing here, then?" Blaine asked, trying to change subjects and drive their conversation towards safer issues.

"Well, I finished my Law degree and I thought _what a better place to start than in New York, where my favorite Killer is?_"

"Yeah, I'm sure you came to New York for me" Blaine dismissed the thought with a chuckle, but the expression on Sebastian's face made him doubt if he was really joking.

"Well, that and the fact it was always my dream to live in New York, at least for a while. You've been here long now, haven't you?"

"Yeah, almost five years now, and I wouldn't leave it for the world" Blaine answered, happy to be able to have a normal conversation with the guy he had considered a friend once, even if the lack of personal space was still bothering him.

"You look happy" Sebastian commented with a honest smile that Blaine reciprocated.

"I am" Blaine confirmed.

"Maybe you can show me what's so great about this city, then. After all, I came here for you" Sebastian said, and Blaine couldn't tell if he was joking or not.

"Yeah, right, I already told you I didn't believe that"

"What do I have to do for you to believe me, then?" Sebastian asked with a seductive tone that again Blaine didn't know how to interpret, as he rested his hand on the wall next to Blaine's face, cornering even more.

"It's taking him too long even with all these people, isn't it?" Sam asked again after a few minutes, and he wasn't even trying to hide his concern anymore.

"Maybe" Tina finally admitted, and her worry must have been as evident in her face as in Sam's because Mike immediately noticed.

"What's wrong?" Mike asked, noticing the mood.

"We can't find Blaine" Tina explained, her eyes never stopping looking around for some trace of his best friend.

"I saw him a while ago at the bar, talking to some guy" Mike explained.

"Some guy?" Sam asked, surprised.

"Yeah, they were right there" Mike said, pointing at the last place he had seen Blaine with this mysterious tall guy of whom Mike had only seen his back. Mike turned his gaze towards the side and it was not long until he finally spotted Blaine amongst the crowd, and the mysterious guy was still with him. "Ok, Sam, don't go crazy, but he is right there, at the wall. That guy seems to be cornering him and he doesn't seem to like it that much"

The worry present in Sam's face until that moment quickly turned into anger, and he seemed to be fuming even before he started moving. Only Tina's hand to his chest stopped him from running towards that guy and… he still didn't know what he was going to do to him, but it wasn't going to be pleasant.

"Sam, calm down, nothing's happened yet" Tina reminded him before letting him go.

"And it's not going to, I can assure you that" Sam answered before making his way through the crowd towards where he had seen his boyfriend being cornered against the wall, breathing deeply so as to try to calm himself down before he did something he might regret later.

"Call us if you need us!" Mike yelled after him, concerned about the safety of his friends, as he kept watching the scene in case he was needed to intervene.

When he reached them, he could see that guy was moving even closer to Blaine, who seemed to be uncomfortable enough with it for Sam to intervene. So no very ceremoniously, Sam grabbed the mysterious guys' shoulders and pulled him away from his boyfriend in one swift movement.

"What the hell are you doing? I don't think he appreciates your company, so fuck off" Sam warned him in his most threatening voice, placing himself between Blaine and the other boy as he pushed him away even further from them with a firm hand on his chest.

"What the fuck is your problem?" the guy replied, obviously feeling insulted, as he advanced towards them with a cocky pose.

"I will give you a problem if you don't fuck off right now" Sam retorted, his angry evident in his actions as he shoved him more violently this time and his opponent raised his hands to counter-attack.

"Hey! Stop it right now, both of you!" Blaine yelled as he jumped from behind Sam and stood in between the other two men, his arms spread to keep the distance between them, to which both of them immediately stopped, afraid to hurt the last person they wanted to hurt. "Do either of you know how to talk? Are you animals, or what?" Blaine reproached them angrily, as he hated any kind of violence –especially if it was over him.

"Hey, Sam" the intruder suddenly greeted with an insolent smile, and it was then when Sam really looked at his face and recognized him.

"Sebastian" Sam acknowledged him, some of his previous anger leaving his body and his stance –but not all of it.

"So you're still friends? That's sweet" Sebastian said, trying not to show how jealous he was at the fact that that guy had been close to Blaine for all these years while he hadn't had the chance.

"No, actually he's my boyfriend now" Blaine explained without hesitation, and it made Sam feel infinitely better that Blaine was very clear about being taken. "We live together"

"Yeah, we're life partners" Sam confirmed, feeling the need to reinforce the concept to the guy he knew had practically stalked Blaine for months back at high school.

"Really?" Sebastian asked with his usual arrogant smirk, which didn't belie how much it had hurt to know that. "I would have never thought you played in our court too"

"I'll play in whatever court Blaine is" Sam answered quite spitefully, his shoulders tensing again at the obvious hint that Sebastian doubted his feelings for Blaine, until his boyfriend put his hand on one of said shoulders and rubbed at it to calm him down.

"Isn't that sweet? Well, it's obvious I'm interrupting tonight, so we should get together some time and have a loooong chat, right Blaine?" Sebastian said, suddenly turning to smile at Blaine as if Sam wasn't there anymore.

"Mm… sure" Blaine answered, the unexpectedness of it all leaving him almost speechless as he tried to calm his tense boyfriend with his touch.

"So befriend me again on facebook, ok? No hard feelings about unfriending me the last time, you know. We so need to get up to date now we both live in the city. You know, connect again" Sebastian knew he was provoking Sam, but he couldn't help it; he had come to New York for Blaine and he had not expected him to be in such a serious relationship. The last time he had spoken with Trent, he told him about Blaine's break-up with Kurt, when had Sam been thrown in the mix? "So I'll see you around, Killer" he finally sighed as he turned around to go, not before sending a kiss in Blaine's direction.

Sam started menacingly after him again, but Blaine took advantage of the hand he had on Sam's shoulder to grab him more strongly and stop him.

"What the hell was that?" Blaine demanded angrily once Sebastian was out of earshot.

"A thank you would have been more appreciated" Sam answered, surprised, because what the hell? He was just defending his boyfriend!

"Thank you for what?" Blaine asked with a humorless laugh.

"For defending you, maybe?" Sam retorted sarcastically.

"You mean for jumping at someone who was just talking to me?"

"Just talking? Hello? Have you just met Sebastian?"

"I think I know Sebastian more than you do" Blaine reminded him.

"Oh, and he never tried anything with you, right?" Sam asked, not being able to believe Blaine would be so unreasonable about Sebastian"

"Ok, yeah, he was kind of attracted to me in high school, but it's been years!"

"Attracted? Blaine, that guy tried to get Kurt out of the way to get to you, only he ended up hurting you in the process, remember?" Sam felt obliged to remind his boyfriend of that little fact because yeah, they could be angry at the moment, but he still felt he needed to protect him, even if it was from his own blindness.

"Yeah, Sam, I remember, but I forgave him for that a long time ago. Come on, he even helped me when I proposed to Kurt, remember? What am I supposed to do now, just turn my back to him and forget he ever existed?"

"Well, maybe you should have done that when he started flirting with you!" Sam reproached him.

"We were just talking!" Blaine defended himself.

"Maybe you were, but the looks he gave you told a very different story" Sam answered in all honesty because he trusted Blaine and he knew he hadn't been responding to Sebastian's flirting at all, but he seemed to have missed it, clueless as he usually was. "And did he have to corner you like that, hovering over you like he was going to attack you any minute? Because I could see you were pretty uncomfortable even from afar"

"He doesn't mean anything by it, that's just the way he is" Blaine tried to reason with his boyfriend, because it was the truth, Sebastian was always like this, and it didn't necessarily mean he was looking for something, right?

"Oh my God, Blaine, how can you be so oblivious sometimes?" Sam asked, sounding even angrier than before at his naive boyfriend, and hurtful words left his mouth before he could even realize it. "No wonder Kurt got so angry at you about him back in high school"

Blaine forgot any argument he had ready to say when Sam mentioned his ex and used him against him. Offended and deeply hurt, he just closed his mouth and gazed at Sam with eyes where sadness was slowly replacing the previous anger, just before turning around while shaking his head.

"Blaine, wait, I didn't mean that, I'm sorry" Sam, his anger also gone in a heartbeat, put a hand to Blaine's shoulder to stop him, but Blaine extricated from his grip, not wanting to be touched at the moment.

"Oh yeah? Well, here's an idea: if you don't mean something, don't say it!" Blaine retorted, trying to sound angry again, but the sadness in his voice didn't fool Sam at all.

"Where are you going?" Sam asked behind Blaine's back as the latter started walking towards the door.

"I'm going home, suddenly I'm not in the mood for partying anymore" Blaine had felt tempted to not even turn around to answer, but he knew the noise of the place would make Sam miss his answer if he didn't.

"Don't go alone, Blaine!" Sam begged, and he was about to catch Blaine's shoulder again when the thought better of it. "Let's talk about it"

"I… just want to go home now" Blaine explained in a sad and soft voice, almost feeling sorry at going against his boyfriend's wishes, but he knew they were both beyond the line to have a rational conversation right then and both needed to cool down before attempting it again. "Tell Tina I'm sorry"

"But…" Sam tried to insist, because they didn't even need to talk if Blaine didn't want to… He just didn't want him to go on his own, sad and alone and without Sam to make it all better.

"I'll be okay" Blaine explained with a reassuring nod, acknowledging that he was aware of Sam's worries and wanting to placate them even if they were at odds, because no matter how angry or hurt he was, he would never be indifferent to Sam's worry or pain, just as the other way around.

Sam felt like the worst person in the world as he saw his boyfriend go. He hated fighting with him, more than anything, and now that his anger had evaporated, he could see how stupid and unnecessary their argument had been. But he also knew it hadn't been their discussion the thing to cause Blaine the pain he had seen in his eyes before he went away. It had been Sam's hurtful words at the end. Sam more than anyone knew how difficult Blaine and Kurt's relationship was for a long time before they broke up, and how undermined Blaine had felt for a long time because of Kurt's constant judgment and reproaches. And not only had Sam reminded him of it all, but he had said Kurt was right. No wonder Blaine wouldn't even talk to him right then.

He just could imagine all the thoughts going around in Blaine's head at the moment, and he could cry at how much his boyfriend had to be hurting at the moment. He knew Blaine's insecurities, fueled by some very important betrayals along his young life, manifested in the worst way when he fought with someone important –especially Sam–. It was as if he couldn't understand that simple disagreements sometimes happen, and for a while he irrationally worried he had irremediably screwed it up and nothing would ever be the same, or Sam wouldn't be able to forgive him, or he would even stop loving him. So whenever they fought –which fortunately wasn't very often– Sam always needed to spend quite a bit of time after they made up just reassuring Blaine that everything was alright, that he still loved him endlessly and that no stupid argument was ever going to change that.

So with a heavy heart, Sam made his way back to his friends, who back then were all looking at him and waiting for some explanation at Blaine's sudden disappearance.

"Sam?" Tina said, not really needing more words to make her question understood.

"Mm… Blaine asked me to tell you he's sorry, but he wasn't feeling that good so he went home" Sam answered, being only half-honest.

"What happened, Sam?" Mike asked, much more incisive than his girlfriend.

"That was Sebastian" Sam blurted out, too upset to try and make any more excuses.

"Sebastian? As in Sebastian Smythe?" Artie asked, surprised and slightly repulsed. He very well remembered how Blaine's eye injury had affected all of them back in high school, and he had never forgiven him for hurting one of them.

"Yeah" Sam simply answered with a sad smile. "Look, Blaine and I argued and… I said some things I should have never said so if you don't mind I'm going to go too. I really need to apologize. Plus I don't like him going alone at this time of night, I need to make sure he is alright"

"Of course, Sam, you go and make it all better" Tina encouraged him with a comforting hand to his bicep. "But don't worry too much, it was just a silly argument, right?"

"Yeah, of course" Sam admitted, wanting to convince himself as much as Tina. "But… he's still hurting so…"

"I'll call him tomorrow to see how you both are" Tina promised before going for a hug with her friend.

"Thanks for everything, Tina. I'm sorry we ruined your night"

"Hey, you didn't, we had a great time until now"

"So we'll meet again soon, right?" Sam suggested to everyone who was listening and then, with a sad smile, he turned around and left the place, just as Blaine had done just a few minutes ago.

Sam couldn't help a little sigh of relief when he arrived home and could see all kind of evidences that Blaine had already arrived: his jacket was hanging on the rack next to the door and his keys were lying on the table; he had even lit the small lamp on the corridor for when Sam arrived, the blond noticed with a fond smile.

His heart beating with a more acceptable pace now he knew at least Blaine had made it home alright, Sam quietly got into their shared bedroom and sighed again at seeing Blaine safe and sound with his own eyes, even if his back was to him and the tension in his muscles belied how awake and upset he still was.

For only a second, Sam contemplated grabbing a blanket from the closet and spending the night on the sofa, as he didn't know if he would be welcome in the bed. But he immediately thought better of it, because Blaine was not like that: no matter how angry he could get –something that happened very rarely–, he would never push Sam away. And Sam knew that sleeping in the sofa, even if he did it so as not to make Blaine uncomfortable, would feel more like a betrayal to the shorter guy, and Sam knew he had hurt him enough.

So after striping to only his underwear, Sam got into bed and, after hesitating for a second, he wrapped himself around Blaine, spooning him from behind. He felt Blaine tensing at the unexpected contact, but after a second he felt him relaxing into his embrace, though he still didn't say a word.

"Blaine?" Sam dared to ask when Blaine didn't object to his embrace. "Can we talk?"

"Can we talk tomorrow?" Blaine asked back, his voice sounding almost if he was pleading.

"No, Blaine, I can tell I hurt you and I need to fix it" Sam insisted.

"Not now, Sam"

"But Blaine, I…"

"Sam, please, I asked you to leave it until tomorrow, could you do that for me?" Blaine asked again, and he sounded so tired and upset that Sam didn't have the heart to contradict him anymore.

"Yeah, of course, sorry. It's just that… we once promised not to go to sleep angry" Sam reminded him in the most loving and unreproachful tone he could muster.

"I'm not angry" Blaine whispered with a sigh as he unconsciously snuggled back even closer against Sam's chest, and the latter could feel he was being honest.

"You aren't?"

"No, I just can't talk right now"

"Are you alright?" Sam asked, squeezing Blaine's middle more strongly to him, because something in Blaine's tone and in the way he seemed to be craving some physical comfort made him worry that Blaine was more upset than he had previously imagined.

"I'm okay" Blaine assured him, bringing one hand to the arm that Sam had around him to gently caress it up and down.

"Alright" Sam finally relented. "But you know I'm sorry, right?"

"Yeah" Blaine answered immediately.

"And you know I love you, right?" Sam felt the urge to remind him.

"Yes, of course" Blaine answered again, though with hint of hesitation that broke Sam's heart. "I love you too"

Sam kissed the back of Blaine's neck with all the love in the world, and was a bit comforted by the soft sigh escaping Blaine's lips and by the fact that, even if they were at odds, he could still wrap himself around his lover and he would be welcome, and he could still tell him he loved him and be honestly reciprocated. Sam was happy that at least he could offer that kind of comfort to his wounded lover, even if it had been him the one to make Blaine feel bad in the first place.

Sam was not really surprised –though he was a bit disappointed– when he woke up and Blaine was not at his side of the bed anymore. None of them had slept all that well for obvious reasons, and Blaine had very probably gone too restless once he was awake to stay in bed. Sam knew he had probably worried about disturbing his sleep with his tossing and turning, so he had preferred to let him sleep in peace.

So Sam quickly put on some sweat pants and an old T-shirt and went in search of him. He was not difficult to find, though, as he was in the living room, sitting on the sofa, his legs sprawled in front of him, reading –or pretending to, because his gaze wasn't even in the pages of the book–. He hadn't even bothered out of his pajamas yet, and Sam could see he was waiting for him, as he hadn't started doing a thousand things at the same time yet, like he usually did when he woke up before Sam did.

"Hey" Sam said to make himself known, still rubbing his tired eyes.

"Hey" Blaine answered, immediately closing his book and even managing a smile when Sam bent over to kiss the top of his head.

"Did you get any sleep at all?" Sam asked, trying not to sound too worried.

"A little" Blaine confessed as he bent his legs to his chest to leave Sam enough room to sit next to him. "You didn't do much better, from what I could see"

"No, you're right" Sam didn't even try to deny it, as he obeyed and sat on the sofa, facing his boyfriend. "Are you… ready to talk now?"

"Yes, of course. I'm sorry I didn't talk last night, but I needed to put my thoughts in order first"

"It's alright"

"It's really not, you're just too kind" Blaine commented with a shy smile that Sam immediately reciprocated.

"Or repentant. Look, I'm sorry about everything: about almost fighting Sebastian, about making you feel like I didn't trust you… and for what I said about Kurt. I know that's what hurt you the most" Sam explained and, without even being aware of it, he gently grabbed Blaine's feet and brought them to his lap so he could lovingly caress his calves, because touching had always being second nature to them, even at awkward times like those.

"It is. But I can't say I blame you" Blaine admitted, and that terrible sadness from last night washed over him again. "I know where that comes from"

"What do you mean?" Sam asked, never stopping his loving ministrations on Blaine's legs in case they soothed him, as he looked as if he could really do with some comfort.

"I get it. As soon as you mentioned Kurt and his jealousy over Sebastian I saw what you were really worried about. I told you all about how I cheated on Kurt in senior year. You know I'm a cheater, and it's just normal that you worry it can happen again, even more now Sebastian is back in my life" Blaine confessed, and only the fact that his shame made him lower his gaze stopped him from seeing the surprise and negation in Sam's face.

"What? No, Blaine, of course not" Sam denied, clearly astounded at Blaine's train of thought. "I've never worried about that and I trust you a hundred per cent. You are not a cheater"

"Well, Sam, unfortunately I am, I cheated and that is something I will never be able to erase" Blaine explained, and his sorrow was so real and intense that Sam felt he could almost touch it.

"Look, I'm not saying what you did was right. But I told you then and I'll tell you again, I can totally understand why you did it. You felt alone in a high school you had transferred to only to be with Kurt and he wasn't there anymore. You had no real friends there, because Kurt had absorbed you to the point you only hung up with his friends, and they were gone too. Not only that, but even if he had promised he was going to be there for you in the distance, he was totally ignoring you and making you feel like shit. He didn't even give a fuck when you were elected class President, come on" Sam tried to reason with him, grabbing Blaine's hand in his and entwining their fingers together.

"I still cheated" Blaine answered, shaking his hand as he stubbornly refused to be absolved.

"You just wanted to move on, to feel loved. Not everything that happens around you it's only your fault, sweetie. Anyone in your place would have probably done the same" Sam insisted, using his thumb to draw comforting patterns in the soft skin of Blaine's hand.

"You really don't worry that it might happen again?" Blaine asked, his eyes so full of hope that Sam felt like embracing him and keeping him enveloped in his arms forever so no harm would ever come to him again. But he didn't yet, because he still needed to make a point.

"Not at all. I love you with everything that I am, and I know you feel the same way about me. We are a team, it's you and me against the world, why would any of us need anyone else?" Sam reasoned, and it was so simple and it made so much sense that Blaine could only believe him. "I can assure you I'm never going to neglect you like Kurt did"

"So you don't think I'm a cheater?"

"No, of course not. You cheated once, well, okay. You were young, you felt lost and you made a mistake. That doesn't make you a cheater. Remember when I came back to New Directions and we were rehearsing for sectionals? I got angry at you and shoved you. But you're not afraid of me, are you? You don't see me and think I could hurt you"

"What? Of course not! I know you would never hurt me!" Blaine answered, just feeling upset at the mere thought of considering Sam as a dangerous person instead of the gentle and sweet man he really was.

"See? Just because I made a mistake once doesn't mean I'm going to do it again" Sam explained, once again making it so easy to understand. "Well, the same works for you, babe"

"And you wonder why I consider you the smartest man on Earth…" Blaine said with a fond smile, looking at his boyfriend in utter adoration.

"You just look kindly at me" Sam answered, but his chest was puffing up with pride as it did anytime Blaine reminded him he was not stupid –or that he was, in fact, very intelligent–, like most people made him think.

"No, I really mean it. You make everything seem so easy… I'm almost tempted to believe you" Blaine replied, but by the smile on his face Sam could see he had made the point in Blaine's stubborn head.

"Then do, because it's the truth. One mistake can't define you"

"I totally deserved your push, though" Blaine suddenly said with a mischievous smile.

"You kind of did, to be honest" Sam answered with a chuckle, and he wasn't fast enough to avoid the playful punch Blaine directed at his stomach. "Just come here, my sweet and beautiful boy"

Sam opened his arms for him and Blaine immediately gave him his widest smile and fell into them, letting himself be engulfed in one of those warm and strong and almost suffocating embraces Sam always gave him when he was trying to make him feel better, putting his own arms around Sam's back and letting himself get lost in his familiar and comforting scent as he deeply inhaled in the curve of his neck.

"I wish I could have stopped you from feeling like that" Sam confessed once the embrace broke, though he kept one of his arms around Blaine's shoulder. "Is that why you couldn't talk last night?"

"Yeah" Blaine admitted, snuggling closer to Sam's chest without even realizing it. "If I talked I knew I was going to break down and you, being you, would try and make me feel better and I didn't feel I deserved to be comforted"

"Now you listen to me: no matter what you do, or how angry we get or whatever: you'll always deserve to be comforted and I'll always want to do it"

"I really struck lucky when you became my boyfriend, didn't I?" Blaine asked, looking adoringly at the love of his life.

"I'm the lucky one here, my love" Sam answered, kissing the tip of Blaine's nose for good measure, but he knew there were things that still needed to be discussed. "But B… don't you think we should talk about our argument? About how it made us feel?"

"Well, I didn't like it when you said that about Kurt and how he was right about Sebastian and me" Blaine confessed, feeling bad at complaining when they had already made up, but he knew Sam was right and they needed to talk about their feelings and be honest to each other.

"I know" Sam admitted, feeling glad that at least Blaine was talking about it instead of keeping it all for himself. "I'm terribly sorry I said that. I don't even think it"

"I've never, ever, compared the relationship you and I have with the one I had with Kurt because I think that would be disrespectful, so it hurt when you did" Blaine explained, and Sam was glad he was only explaining it to him, not reproaching him of anything. "Especially considering you were taking sides with him"

"Yeah, I regretted it the second those words came out of my mouth and I saw the hurt in your eyes. It pained me to know it had been me putting it there. It pained me a lot"

"It's okay now, Sam" Blaine immediately forgave him. "I know you regret it, and I know I was not being that rational either, so it's my fault too. Sebastian has a dark past and I should have understood it affected you instead of getting so in the defensive. So I'm sorry too"

"It's okay" Sam forgave him too in a heartbeat. "But I need you to understand that I trust you, that I know you only love me and that I know that nothing is going to happen between Sebastian and you"

"Are you sure? Because you got really angry yesterday when I was talking to him"

"But not because I didn't trust you" Sam immediately corrected him, wanting to make a point. "I didn't even know it was someone you knew: I could only see my boyfriend being cornered against his will and flew into a temper. I wasn't being jealous, I swear, I was just trying to protect you"

"That's sweet" Blaine said with a smile as he rested his head on Sam's shoulder, almost purring when the blond's hand started brushing his scalp with the tip of his fingers.

"I'm not jealous of Sebastian. Well, I obviously don't like him drooling all over you, I'm not going to lie, but I know you don't want anything to do with him so I'm not worried about that. But… if we're being honest… I don't like him, and I don't trust him around you" Sam explained, feeling the need of being totally honest with his boyfriend.

"Why, Sam?" Blaine asked in surprise.

"Well… I've never told you that, but I never forgave him for what he did to you in our junior year"

"You mean… the slushee incident?"

"It was not an incident, Blaine. He put you in the hospital, you had to undergo surgery because of him. I know it was not directed at you, but he still wanted to do that damage. And he didn't even look back while you were writhing in pain in that garage floor"

"I know" Blaine admitted with a heavy heart, as he clearly remembered how betrayed and hurt he had felt at that moment, that not only Sebastian but all of his former Dalton friends had left him there while he was injured. "But he regretted it later"

"Yeah, but only because he was feeling guilty about how much of a jerk he had been with Karofsky and afraid he had pushed him towards his suicide attempt. It's not like he changed that much once he got over that, right? He still went along with Hunter's asteroids plan, didn't he?" Sam asked, not trying to convince Blaine of anything, just wanting for him to be careful with Sebastian's sudden arrival.

"When you put it like that, I can see why you wouldn't trust him" Blaine admitted, acknowledging Sam's worries, though he still had his doubts. "I really think he might have changed, or at least outgrown all these things, but if it bothers you that much I won't see him again"

"No, Blaine" Sam immediately contradicted him, taking Blaine's hand in his own again. "I'm never going to tell you what you can or cannot do, it doesn't work like that. You think he deserves a chance and I trust your judgment; if you think he can be a friend, then you should give it a try and I'll support you. I'll be watching him and threatening to kill him if he ever hurts you, but it's your decision" Sam joked a bit at the end, tying to lighten the atmosphere a bit.

"Well, as you said before, we all make mistakes that shouldn't define us. He was a friend once. I just feel I owe him a second chance" Blaine tried to make Sam understand, but he was relieved when Sam smiled at him.

"And that's why I fell in love with you, because you have the biggest heart, even if sometimes that's just a nuisance"

"I'm just using your words" Blaine replied with a mischievous smile.

"I'll never learn to keep my mouth shut, will I?" Sam groaned, though he still reciprocated Blaine's smile.

"Promise me something, though" Blaine asked, turning more serious again.

"Anything"

"We're never ever going to fight over Sebastian again"

"Deal" Sam immediately agreed, because fighting Blaine was the last thing on his mind, over Sebastian or over anything else.

"And… tell me you still love me" Blaine said with a little smile to hide he was only half joking, but Sam knew better.

"More and more everyday" Sam immediately reassured him, squeezing him more strongly to his chest and kissing his forehead in the most loving way.

"Come on, I'm serious"

"So am I" Sam insisted, outlining Blaine's face with the tip of his fingers in a gentle caress. "There's no way I can't stop loving you, however obnoxious you get"

"That's… sweet, I guess?" Blaine asked with a chuckle, but it was obvious he thought it was but they way he snuggled under Sam's chin.

"You're guessing right. So now that we're okay, and we've established how much we love each other and everything, maybe we could have a little nap?" Sam suggested out of the blue.

"But you just got up!" Blaine protested.

"Yeah, but neither one of us got much sleep last night, did we?" Sam reminded him, and suddenly Blaine couldn't stop a yawn at realizing how tired he felt indeed. "I know I didn't, my eyelids feel so heavy… I think a little nap will do wonders for me, but of course I need you to cuddle up to me or it won't work" Sam let go of him and stretched on his back on the sofa as gracefully as he could, considering Blaine was sitting in the middle of it.

"Alright, if you need me so… But I'm only doing it for you" Blaine joked as he followed Sam's example and lied down, practically on top of him as there was not so much room in the sofa, though both of them were far from bothered about that fact.

"Oh, this is heaven" Sam commented with the longest sigh as Blaine finished accommodating himself on Sam's body and his breathing started deliciously tickling the blond's neck. "Let me tell you I love you so much before I fall asleep" Sam reminded him, his eyes starting to close already, and Blaine sighed happily before answering.

"I love you more" he added, smiling in anticipation at what he knew was going to be Sam's reaction, even if he was half asleep by then.

"No way, I'll always love you more" Sam protested, his voice already slurred with sleep even if his arm strengthened his grip around Blaine's waist, making the latter smile on the crook of his neck before he closed his eyes to follow his dreamy boyfriend to the realm of dreams.

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><p><em><strong>AN:** I'm sorry it took me so long to update... I'm really really struggling with this story at this point, to be honest, and it's not going as I would like so I keep getting stuck... I was thinking about maybe leaving it for a while (while I write another one that had been hanging in my mind for some weeks), but I don't know. Let's see how everything goes! Thanks for reading!_


	4. Chapter 4

_As always..._

**_Me-me157: _**_Yeah, I garantee you it was so hard for me to make them fight! But not everything can be that sugary end cloying all the time, right? It already is most of the time ;) Oh, come on, give Sebastian a bit of credit! Maybe it's Blaine the one who's right, and Sebastian is really not that bad, who knows! Thank you so much, sweetie!_

**_Bourne:_**_ I'm so glad you like it, as I'm not that confident with this sequel! Of course I'm keeping Blam together, who do you take me for? ;) It's not really a problem of not having ideas, really. On the contrary: I want a lot of things to happen and I don't know how to put them together. But hey, I will, one way or another! Thank you so much!_

**_Raiderva:_**_ Hey, thanks! I'm struggling with the fact the story line for this one isn't as well defined as the other was... It's not about their relationship, but about all the things I want for them to go through... I don't know, I'll do it the best I can! I'm so glad you liked it, your words were very reassuring! So thank you so much!_

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><p><strong>CHAPTER 4<strong>

"So… did you have any luck in finding a job yet?" Blaine asked Sebastian with genuine interest. After a week of insistent facebook messages, Blaine had finally relented and agreed to meet him as promised. Without asking Sebastian for his opinion, Blaine decided that a café would be the ideal place to meet, in remembrance of those times they had met at the Lima Bean, back in Ohio, in the short period of time in which they were truly friends. And Sebastian, obviously, just had to agree, even if another kind of date had been on his mind.

"Not yet, I've had a few interviews, but without any experience…" Sebastian answered good-naturedly. Because yes, this is not how he had planned to meet Blaine again, but it felt good and comfortable just catching up with him, feeling some of the friendship they had once share still remained.

"I'm surprised you didn't use your father's contacts for that" Blaine added, only half joking.

"Well, for once I wanted to feel I got something just for me, and not because it's been given to me, you know?"

"Yeah, I know how it feels. I've been supporting myself practically since I moved to New York and even if it's difficult sometimes, you get to feel more comfortable with yourself at the end of the day"

"So… you don't get any help from your family?" Sebastian asked, clearly surprised. From what he knew, Blaine's family was nearly as wealthy as his was. And even if Sebastian wanted to find a job for himself, it was his parents who paid for his rent and expenses until then.

"No, I was lucky I got a scholarship for NYADA, otherwise I would never have been able to afford it" Blaine explained, and Sebastian could see he wasn't as comfortable talking about that as he had been only a moment ago.

"How come? I thought your family was as _generous _as mine with their money so they can brag about what a wonderful education they gave their children" Sebastian sarcastically asked, but he almost regretted it when he saw a wave of sadness cross Blaine's features.

"Well…" Blaine hesitated, because it was never easy for him to talk about his family, but Sebastian was trying to be a good friend, so he owed him that, right? "I was… kind of disowned soon after I moved to New York"

"What?" Sebastian asked, for once forgetting about his cheeky pose and looking genuinely worried about his friend. "What happened?"

"They weren't happy at all about me going to a drama school on the first place, but when I took Kurt home and introduced him as my partner for the first time… Let's say my father made me choose"

"But… didn't they know you were gay before that?"

"Oh, they did" Blaine explained, sadly nodding his head as he looked down in remembrance. "But I guess they thought it was just a phase, or something I could hide as I married the right and perfect woman… So when I refused to back down, they threw me out of their house"

"And now…" Sebastian encouraged him to continue.

"We haven't spoken for four years" Blaine answered with the saddest smile. "I'm lucky I still have my brother, though, he is the best" he added, his smile more genuine this time.

"I can't believe that, Blaine, I'm… I'm so sorry you had to go through that" Sebastian added, friendly patting Blaine's forearm in a comforting gesture.

"Well, we never had the easiest relationship to begin with, so I guess it's not that big a deal…" Blaine answered, trying to play down the importance of it.

Sebastian looked at him with a new light. He had always liked Blaine, a lot. Not just sexually or romantically, but he had always admired him as a person because of his generous nature and his obvious charm. But he now realized he had never gotten to really know him, not in all his depth, not with all the history that made him who he is. And that only made him fall even more for him.

"It is a big deal, of course it is. If there is anything I can do…" Sebastian offered, completely honest.

"There is. Just… being my friend. It took me a long time to understand that it wasn't my fault and that I deserved to have people near who cared about me. Sam invested a lot of his time in making me understand that, even before we were a couple" Blaine explained with a fond smile when talking about his boyfriend that Sebastian didn't miss.

"I'm here for you for whatever you need too. You know that, don't you?" Sebastian added, surprising even himself with the sincerity of his offer: he wasn't trying to score a goal with it, he was genuinely wanting to help Blaine in any way he could.

"I do" Blaine answered, and he was glad Sebastian and he could really be friends again. "But hey, I'm mostly okay with everything now, I made my peace with it a long time ago. And you want to know something? Maybe it's stupid, but Sam and I can proudly say that everything we have, as little as it might be, we earned it for ourselves"

"It's not stupid" Sebastian contradicted him, even if his heart was aching at yet another mention of Blaine's boyfriend. "That's… really impressive of you"

"And you will be proud of yourself too, once you find a job" Blaine told him, dismissing his appraisal, and his smile was so encouraging that Sebastian could only believe him. "Hey, I didn't want to make all the conversation about me, I'm sorry"

"Hey, don't be. I want to know everything about you" Sebastian explained with a smile that, for once, wasn't intended to be flirty, and was glad when Blaine reciprocated it.

"What time is it, by the way? I have a date tonight"

"It's almost six" Sebastian answered after looking at his watch, trying to sound nonchalant, and not as jealous and deflated as he felt. "Yeah, I noticed you were looking even prettier than usual. And who's the lucky guy?"

"Who do you think?" Blaine asked with a confused smile. "Sam, of course"

"Aww, you two still have dates, that's so sweet" Sebastian joked, hiding his bitterness about it as well as he could.

"Of course we have!" Blaine chuckled, oblivious to the other boy's actual feelings about it. "Otherwise we would just let ourselves fall into a routine! We're just going to have dinner and go to the movies, no big deal, but it keeps the fire going, you know. He's picking me up any minute now"

"So you and Sam…" Sebastian hesitated before asking, but he had to know. He felt he was falling head over heels for Blaine once again and he needed to know if he stood a chance. "You're serious"

"Totally. He's the best thing that ever happened to me" Blaine asked in all honesty, not aware of how much his words affected his friend.

"You seem…"

"What?"

"Very much in love" Sebastian observed, trying to ignore the sharp pain in his heart at the smile his words elicited on the other boy.

"I am" Blaine confirmed.

"Good, because there's your man" Sebastian announced as he saw Sam entering the café and looking for his boyfriend.

"Oh, there he is" Blaine said as he turned around to look, and the way his face lit and a smile filled his lips at just the sight of his boyfriend made Sebastian's heart ache with envy. "Sam!" Blaine called him, and Sam's face broke into a matching smile as soon as he spotted him.

"Hey, love" Sam greeted him, bending over to kiss Blaine's cheek as soon as he was close enough. "Hey, Sebastian" Sam was polite enough to offer.

"Sam" Sebastian answered shortly.

"Listen, I…" Sam started, and Sebastian pretended not to notice the encouraging nod Blaine gave him. "I'm sorry about the other day, I… I didn't know it was you"

"You mean when you tried to assault me?" Sebastian asked before he could even stop himself, pretending not to see the disapproving look Blaine was throwing at him.

"Yeah, that" Sam answered, willing himself not to get angry because he had promised Blaine he was going to behave. "I'm sorry"

"Okay" was the only answer Sebastian offered, and Sam seemed to be so uncomfortable that he decided to just wait outside before he got angry again.

"So… mmmm… I've got a cab waiting…" he explained, only looking at his boyfriend this time. "I'll wait for you outside"

"I'll be there in a minute" Blaine answered with a comforting pat to Sam's forearms, and as soon as his boyfriend was out of earshot, he turned to Sebastian with a less friendly expression than just a minute ago. "Look, Sebastian, if you want us to be friends you're going to have to do a bigger effort to get along with Sam"

"Me?" Sebastian asked, pretending to feel outraged. "Correct me if I'm wrong, but he doesn't look like he is dying to be my best friend"

"He apologized to you for the other day, even if you were as much to blame as he was" Blaine answered because he was not allowing anyone to treat his Sam the wrong way, however good a friend they were.

"Come on, I could see your nod, you so asked him to do it" Sebastian answered, now he being the one feeling uncomfortable at what felt like a proper scolding.

"Even if that was the case, he still manned up and did it. You haven't apologized to him, though"

"Why should I? He's the one who almost smashed my head in"

"It was not like that at all, and you know it. And listen to me, you have to stop antagonizing Sam, Sebastian, like right now. I'm happy to be your friend again, but Sam is my life and I'm not going to jeopardize my relationship with him for anyone. I don't want to hurt you or to be cruel, but if you two can't get along and I have to choose…"

"You're right, I'm sorry" Sebastian immediately backed down, knowing fully well he was bound to lose in a direct confrontation. Plus he didn't like to make Blaine angry, if he was honest to himself. He'd rather see him smiling, like he usually did. "I'm telling you I want to be your friend and here I am, behaving like an asshole to your boyfriend. It won't happen again"

"I really hope so" Blaine answered as a warning, but he immediately lost his severe stance and there it was, his beautiful smile again as he grabbed his jacket and stood up. "I'm counting on it"

Sebastian followed Blaine with his gaze all the way out of the café, and continued looking at him through the window even when the shorter guy was already outside. He saw how Blaine tenderly put his arms around Sam, waiting for him just outside, who immediately reciprocated the hug and lowered his face to kiss Blaine's lips slowly. Sebastian sighed at the adoring smile Blaine gave to his boyfriend as Sam held the door of the cab for him, and realized that conquering Blaine's heart had never seemed more out of reach.

* * *

><p>"Stop that or I'm never going to be able to unlock the door" Blaine warned his boyfriend with a chuckle as he tried to put the key in the lock of their apartment door as they came back from their date; Sam's arms were around Blaine's waist from behind, and he kept nuzzling the back of his neck, letting the air coming from his nose tickle his sensitive skin.<p>

"I can't help it, your neck is so inviting" Sam answered, his voice a little hoarse with desire as he started kissing it to prove his point. "And your height is perfect for me to assault it every time I've got it in front of me"

"I think it's the first time in my life I'm glad of my height, then" Blaine joked back, finally managing to find the damned lock and open the door.

"Your height is perfect, it just makes you all the cuter" Sam answered, crossing the threshold just behind his boyfriend and closing the door behind him.

"Ok, that didn't make me feel tiny at all" Blaine complained good-naturedly, though Sam still turned him towards him and his arms went around the curly-haired boy in a lazy embrace meant as an apology.

"I mean it, you're just perfect" Sam said, no joking this time, as he captured Blaine's lips in a kiss that lingered.

"Only to your eyes" Blaine answered with an adoring smile, giving Sam's lips a kiss of his own. "But then again, your eyes are the only ones that matter, so…"

"I'm glad we've reached an agreement, then" Sam added with a chuckle before finally letting go of his boyfriend. "I should send a couple of e-mails from work before we get comfortable in front of the TV. Do you mind?"

"Of course not" Blaine immediately reassured him with one of his sweet smiles. "I'll make me some coffee in the meantime"

"Not coffee for you at these hours or you won't get any sleep" Sam warned him, always the worrier, even if Blaine was already half way to the kitchen.

"Alright, mum, am I allowed to have a hot cocoa then?" Blaine asked, poking his head again around the corner.

"I think that should be fine" Sam answered, feigning thinking about it quite deeply.

"Do you want some too? Or a tea?" Blaine offered, and Sam smiled gratefully at his boyfriend.

"Cocoa would be nice, if you don't mind"

"I don't. But it goes in exchange of some sofa-cuddling when you're finished with work"

"Please, that goes without saying" Sam answered while rolling his eyes, eliciting a chuckle from his boyfriend.

As Sam picked up the laptop he shared with his boyfriend and sat on the sofa, he chuckled as he noticed Blaine had _casually_ left his facebook open again, as it had suddenly been happening every now and then for the last couple of weeks. Exactly since they ran into Sebastian back at the club. Sam's heart filled with a rush of affection for his crazy boyfriend, as he knew it was Blaine's way of showing Sam that he didn't have anything to hide and that he trusted and wanted Sam to see and share every aspect of his life. Including Sebastian, of course.

Sam, obviously, just closed the tab without even looking at it. He trusted Blaine a hundred per cent and he didn't feel any need of controlling his life. Though he had to admit that Blaine's gesture of giving him the chance to pry if he felt he needed it warmed his heart endlessly.

He already knew Blaine, as promised, had befriended Sebastian on facebook after their encounter, and that he had tried to encourage Sam to do it too, as he thought that maybe if he included Sam in his friendship with the former warbler he would be more comfortable with it. But Sam had gratefully refused, feeling as if that would be a way to control his boyfriend, as if he didn't trust him and needed to keep an eye on him. Well, it was that, and the fact that he didn't really feel like being friends with Sebastian. Maybe Blaine was okay with it, or he really didn't notice due to his usual naivety, but Sam couldn't stand Sebastian's smug smirk and arrogant manners. The only thing he wanted to know about him was that he wasn't hurting his boyfriend in any way.

"So do these e-mails you have to send have anything to do with your comic?" Blaine interrupted his thoughts yelling from the kitchen because the fact they weren't in the same room didn't mean he stopped craving for Sam's company, right?

"No, these are from work" Sam answered in a loud voice, smiling fondly at his noisy boyfriend.

"And how is the second volume of _Nightbird and the Blond Chameleon_ going?" Blaine continued with their yelled conversation.

"It's practically finished"

"So you're going to publish it soon, then?"

"I'm not sure about that" Sam answered, and he was so sure about what his boyfriend's reaction to his words was going to be that he counted the seconds before Blaine's head would appear behind the kitchen's door.

"What do you mean?" Blaine asked, more softly this time, as he predictably appeared in the living room, drying his hands with a tea towel.

"I don't know if we can afford an investment like that again" Sam confessed with a sigh. Publishing the first volume had been hard enough. "We haven't even fully recovered from the last one, you know"

"But we almost did!" Blaine answered, with that optimism in his voice that Sam loved so much, as he sat next to him and put his hand on Sam's thigh. "And if we could afford it while I was working half time on the music shop, we surely can do it now that I have a full-time and well-paid job!"

"But what if this second volume doesn't sell as good?" Sam asked, as he closed his laptop and left it on the table, forgotten. "I don't want to waste your money for nothing"

"You mean _our _money" Blaine immediately corrected him, and Sam smiled at how sweet that sounded and how good it felt to be in such a committed relationship with the love of his life, to the point that everything they had was now shared between them.

"Ok, our money" Sam admitted, putting his hand over the one Blaine had on his leg and entwining their fingers together in gratitude. "But I don't want it to go to waste anyway. We had plans for that money, remember? It's supposed to pay for our future house"

"A big house won't be any useful if you're feeling unhappy because we didn't dare to make your dreams come true" Blaine tried to reason with him, completely serious and honest. "I'd rather live in this apartment for the rest of our lives, or even in the street, if that meant seeing in your face again the happiness I saw when you got your hands on the first copy of your comic book"

"I know you really mean it, and I love you so much for that" Sam acknowledged his boyfriend's generosity with a tender caress to his cheek. "But… your dreams are important too, like the future we had planned, and it's too risky… Maybe I should wait until I get a publisher"

"And how are you going to get it if they can't see your work?" Blaine insisted, and Sam hated that he did because he knew there was no way Sam wouldn't end up relenting it when Blaine got like that.

"Maybe I could try to contact the publishing houses again and convince them…"

"Nothing is going to convince them more than a project that is already working"

"I don't know…" Sam hesitated, shaking his head. He was dying to do it, but he was also terrified of failing and depriving Blaine from the future of his dreams. Not that Blaine was going to give him a chance, though, he was sure of that.

"Honey, we need to do this" Blaine predictably insisted. "I have so much faith in you and your work"

"Your faith can really move mountains, can't it?" Sam asked with the most loving smile as his fingers moved to place some stray curl behind Blaine's ear.

"Does this mean you're going to give it a try?" Blaine asked, and there was so much hope in his eyes that it looked as if he was asking something out of Sam, instead of trying to give it to him.

"What can I do, when you're giving me your best puppy look?" Sam answered, feigning to look defeated. "You're playing dirty"

Blaine just laughed happily at that and jumped on Sam's lap to shower him with kisses all along his lips and face, until Sam could take it no more and had to stop him with a hand to his face, laughing wholeheartedly.

"It almost looks like it's me wanting to make your dreams come true and not the other way around" Sam said, taking advantage of the proximity of their bodies to embrace his boyfriend warmly to him.

"Your dreams are my dreams too, Sammy" Blaine explained, dismissing Sam's appraisal but letting himself be engulfed into his arms. "And I so know this one is going to come true…"

"I don't think anyone ever believed in me like you do" Sam explained, breaking the embrace to cup his boyfriend's cheeks and look adoringly at him.

"I guess they didn't know you as I do, then" Blaine answered with a shrug of his shoulders, because to him it was as simple as that.

Sam let himself be lost in the golden orbs that were Blaine's eyes, and after a minute he drew his face to his to seal their lips together, marveled at how fast Blaine seemed to melt into his arms and how well they fitted together. One of his arms moved to Blaine's waist to attract him even closer to his own body, and the shorter boy moaned into their kiss when their chests collided.

Sam decided to take advantage of how receptive Blaine seemed to be and gently pushed him into his back and climbed on top of him without even breaking the kiss. Blaine's arms immediately closed around Sam's torso with considerable strength to prevent him from moving even an inch away from him.

It wasn't until he was running out of air that Sam finally broke the kiss, with the intention of moving his loving ministrations to the sensitive skin on his boyfriend's neck, but something caught his attention first.

"What's that smell?" he asked.

"Shit, the cocoa" Blaine answered as Sam roared with laughter at his guilty expression while he tried to extricate himself from under the blond's fierce embrace and ran to the kitchen.

"Everything alright in there?" Sam asked from the living room when he heard Blaine groan, for very different reasons this time, as he tried not to laugh at his boyfriend's antics while picking up the laptop again and continued with his work.

"I'm working on it!" Blaine answered equally loud. "I think I'll be able to save it!"

"Well, if someone can save the day, that is Nightbird" Sam answered, chuckling to himself.

It only took Blaine a couple of minutes to appear in the living room again, with two mugs that smelled delicious in his hands and a proud smile on his face.

"There you are, love" Blaine offered, handing Sam one of the mugs as he sat at his side.

"Thanks, babe" Sam answered with a grateful smile.

"Are you all about done?"

"Yep" Sam answered happily as he once again closed the laptop and left it on the table. Then he changed his mug from one hand to the other and lifted his arm as an invitation for Blaine to get under it and cuddle up to his chest, which he immediately did. "So did you have fun at our date today, sweetie?"

"Always" Blaine answered with a dreamy smile, taking the time to place an appreciating kiss in the curve of Sam's neck. "The movie, though… Now that was a waste of money, and not your comic book!"

"It wasn't that bad!" Sam mockingly protested, not willing to admit how much he agreed with it.

"Wasn't it? Honey, you're never ever choosing the movie again"

"Well, let's be honest, I prefer bad movies because you don't care about them that much and you let me snog you, like today. There was a lot of snogging today" Sam explained without a hint of shame, and he had to smile when he could see Blaine blushing a little.

"There wasn't that much" he contradicted his boyfriend without much emphasis.

"Oh, there was. But when the movie is interesting you won't let me even put my arm around you or open my mouth before you are already shushing me!"

"That's not true! I've never shushed you!" Blaine protested, lifting his upper body from his boyfriend so he could look at him.

"Oh my God, you don't even realize you do it!" Sam answered with a laugh.

"Am I really that bad?" Blaine asked, slightly mortified, though Sam was not relenting yet.

"And worse! I don't think I was allowed to say a single word during all _Begin again_"

"Well, it was a great movie"

"It was, but that doesn't make me want to snog you any less" Sam explained, grabbing Blaine roughly towards him again, almost spilling both their drinks. "In fact it makes me want to snog you even more, because you look so cute when you concentrate…"

"Well, you can snog me now, if you want" Blaine offered with a mischievous smile.

"Not now, you promised you'd watch _The Goonies_ with me before bed, remember?" Sam reminded him, picking up the remote to switch off their TV. "So now shush"

"Oh, so I can't shush you but you can shush me?" Blaine protested, mockingly offended.

"Exactly. Now shush, it's starting"

"You've watched it hundreds of times before!"

"So?"

"Sometimes I don't know how I stand you" Blaine answered with a dramatic sigh as he got more comfortable on Sam's chest, though he couldn't help a fond smile breaking into his lips at Sam's conciliatory kiss to his forehead.

"Because you love me" Sam answered, knowing Blaine would never deny that.

"That must be it" Blaine admitted, closing his eyes as he buried his head under Sam's chin, feeling warm and loved and incredibly lucky.

* * *

><p><strong><em>AN: _**_So a loooot of sugar for this one, but I needed the comfort after some hard times... More angst coming soon!_


	5. Chapter 5

_As always..._

**_Min: _**_thank you!_

**_Lovefordare:_**_ I don't know if this new chapter specifically could be considered angst, but it will come eventually! I love that you like Sebastian and Blaine being friends, as you're going to get a lot of that ;) Thank you so much_

* * *

><p><strong>CHAPTER 5<strong>

Although he had already agreed, it took Blaine a lot of convincing to actually get Sam to have the second volume of _Nightbird and the Blond Chameleon_ published by themselves a few weeks later so they could sell it through the internet, as they had done with the first one.

"Aren't you excited?" Blaine asked with a big smile after they left the place where the printing would be made, resisting the urge to jump on Sam's back and contenting himself with throwing a hand around his shoulders.

"Not really" Sam answered, hating to disappoint the adorable tornado that was his boyfriend when he got thrilled like that, but needing to be honest.

"Why not?" Blaine asked, practically pouting, and it was all Sam could do not to laugh at his childish expression.

"Blaine, we just spent practically all our money. I'm even finding it hard to breathe" Sam answered, only half joking. He knew what it was to be broken, he had experienced it first-hand when his father lost his job a few years ago and he and his family had to live in a motel. He was terrified it could happen again, only this time it would be a thousand times worse, because he would be feeling guilty about dragging Blaine into the mess.

"We didn't spend that much money, don't be so dramatic" Blaine reminded him, not even slightly worried about the outcome of their adventure. "And we both have jobs and regular incomes. Even in the worst possible scenario, we would be fine"

"But if we lose all that money…" Sam insisted because, even if Blaine was right and his words gave him some relief, he still felt bad about spending Blaine's money –or their money, as Blaine would remind him– on his stupid dream.

"But we won't. I'm sure of that" Blaine answered, without the slightest doubt, and Sam put his arm around the shorter boy's waist in appreciation.

"Even if we don't lose it, it could be a long time before we recover our investment" Sam warned him, but Blaine just shrugged his shoulders.

"So? Are you planning on some big expense I should know about?"

"No, but our house…"

"I thought we agreed that wasn't going to happen for some years yet…" Blaine reminded him, because he could see Sam needed some reassurance. If it wasn't because Blaine really wanted to see Sam's wishes come true, he would already be regretting having convinced him to publish the new volume on their own in the first place! "Sam, we're so young yet, let's enjoy life a little!"

"With no money?" Sam asked, but the little smile on his face told Blaine he was joking this time.

"I thought our love was enough" Blaine answered with a dramatic sigh that elicited a heartfelt laugh from Sam, who just squeezed his boyfriend closer to his side as they walked.

"Well, not having to worry about being left in the street is nice too, you know"

"Will you stop worrying about that? That's never going to happen!"

"You never know" Sam added, a little more seriously. "If something big came up, we might not be able to afford it"

"What a pity I'm not on speaking terms with my parents anymore, then, they would be good for that" Blaine joked, a little bitterly, and Sam smiled sadly before planting a kiss on Blaine's cheek meant for comfort, which Sam always felt he needed every time his family appeared on a conversation. "Maybe I should ask for their forgiveness and then some money"

"Don't even joke about that" Sam asked of him, being able to read his boyfriend like an open book. "I'd never take their money after how they treated you"

"Ok, I won't. But please, Sam, stop worrying. This is something we have to do, and it will be so worth it. And even if it isn't… well, at least we tried, didn't we?"

"I guess" Sam finally admitted, stopping in front of his boyfriend and putting his arms around his waist to bring him closer to him. "And you always ask what you did to deserve me… Well, I could very well ask that the other way around right now"

"And it would be a stupid question" Blaine answered with a wide smile before rising on his tiptoes to catch Sam's sweet lips with his own. "Because you deserve everything and then more… but you're stuck with me, so…"

"And I wouldn't change it for anything. I mean, I doubt I could find so much adoration anywhere else…" Sam joked, but he strengthened his grip around Blaine's waist to make it clear that he was only kidding.

"Oh, so that's what you want me for?" Blaine joked, pretending to be offended.

"Absolutely" Sam answered, and he wasn't quick enough to avoid Blaine's hand playfully slapping the back of his neck.

By then they were in front of the cafeteria where Blaine was supposed to be meeting Sebastian for their weekly coffee, as they had been doing for a month now. A nice friendship had floured between them, a friendship Blaine was proud of, and even Sam seemed to be getting more accepting of it –even though he was still claiming to stay alert in case Sebastian decided to hurt Blaine in any way, though the shorter boy knew he was –mostly– joking.

As Sebastian approached the café he was supposed to meet Blaine in, he saw from afar that the boy was indeed waiting for him already, although he was not alone, but tightly wrapped in his boyfriend's arms. Sebastian couldn't help a sad sigh as he saw Blaine's head fall back as he roared with laughter about some silly thing Sam had whispered in his ear, while the blond smiled adoringly at him, their arms not moving an inch so they kept holding each other close. Then Blaine buried his face in the crook of Sam's neck as they embraced again while the latter brought his hand to the back of Blaine's head to hold it there, and it was in that exact moment that Sebastian knew he didn't have, and would never have, the chance to be with Blaine. It was not a big revelation: he had been thinking about that since the moment he first saw them together, even as he felt himself falling more and more for the shorter boy. But he finally resigned to admit to himself that there was nothing he could do… And seeing him so happy and utterly in love, and how Sam took care of him and completed him… he felt he didn't even want to try to take it away from him.

Trying to take those thoughts out of his head to keep his heart from breaking completely, he approached the happy couple and cleared his throat to make his presence known.

"Hey, Killer" he greeted him as the shorter boy broke the embrace, though Sam still kept an arm around his shoulders.

"Hey, Seb" Blaine answered with a smile.

"Sam, I was not expecting you" Sebastian added, turning to the taller of the two.

"Oh, don't worry, I'm not staying" Sam answered in a neutral tone.

"We were running some errands near this place and he was kind enough to wait with me" Blaine explained, giving his boyfriend a tender gaze.

"I'll leave you two alone now" Sam announced before turning only to his boyfriend, still glued to his side, and gave him that smile Sam reserved only for him. "I'll see you at home later, love"

Blaine reciprocated his smile as an answer, and Sam took his time to tenderly capture his lips as his hand curled on the back of his neck, and he felt Blaine instantly melt at his loving gestures. It's not that he needed to remind Blaine who was his boyfriend or anything, it was obvious, but Sam couldn't help wanting to annoy Sebastian a little, even if he didn't feel so much hate towards him anymore.

"Why don't you stay?" Sebastian surprised everyone –including himself– with his question.

"Really?" Sam asked, not even trying to hide his astonishment.

"Yeah, of course" Sebastian answered with an honest, though uncomfortable, smile. Blaine had only asked one thing of him, and that was to get along with Sam. And he would do anything for Blaine, wouldn't he? "You're Blaine's boyfriend, right? Maybe we should… forget about everything and get a fresh start. I think I still owe you an apology"

"Apology accepted" Sam answered, nodding reluctantly. "But I really can't stay, I've got work to do. Maybe some other day?"

"Yes, of course"

"Ok, then. Later, sweetheart" Sam whispered with a last peck to Blaine's smiling lips. "See you, Sebastian" he added politely.

"I hope so" he answered, and both Blaine and Sebastian remained looking at Sam's back for a couple of seconds, with very different thoughts in their minds.

"Well, thank you for that" Blaine said when he finally turned towards his friend.

"I told you I was going to do things right from now on" Sebastian answered in all honesty, as he let himself be pushed towards the interior of the café, where they picked a table and sat down. "And I'm done with disappointing you, so it was the least I could do"

"Well, even then, thank you. It was important to me"

"Well, Sam is your life, as you said. And what's important to you, it's important to me" Sebastian explained, really meaning it.

"Wow, Seb. Thanks" Blaine answered, really moved and glad he had regained Sebastian's friendship after all that time, but then he cleared his throat to try and get a less deep and emotional atmosphere for both their benefits. "And what about you?"

"What about me?"

"Is there someone special in your life?" Blaine asked with a mischievous smile.

"Why do you ask?" Sebastian answered, trying to gain some think how to get out of that conversation. Little did he know how stubborn Blaine was.

"Because we've met quite a few times lately and you haven't told me anything about it yet"

"Haven't I?"

"No, you haven't. So is there someone?" Blaine insisted.

"No" Sebastian simply answered, hoping Blaine would leave it there, though he was disappointed again.

"Oh, come on. You're Sebastian Smythe" Blaine said with a chuckle, as he knew he had been quite a heartbreaker on his time. "There has to be someone"

"Well, maybe in a way" Sebastian admitted.

"I knew it. So you're dating him?" Blaine asked, enthusiastically waiting for an affirmative answer –Sebastian was his friend and he wanted him to be happy.

"No, it can't be" Sebastian answered with a sad smile that immediately erased the one on Blaine's lips.

"Why not?"

"He… will never love me back"

"Why do you say that?" Blaine asked, resting his hand on Sebastian's forearm for comfort. "You never know"

"Oh, I know" Sebastian answered, confidently nodding his head.

"Don't underestimate yourself like that"

"I'm not, it just can't happen"

"But why not, maybe if you…"

"Because it's you" Sebastian interrupted him, unable to avoid the truth any longer.

Blaine, speechless, stiffened at the shock of Sebastian's confession and, after a couple of seconds he retrieved his hand from Sebastian's arm in an unconscious gesture.

"Blaine, I…" Sebastian tried to apologize, mistaking Blaine's surprise for repulse and thinking he had screwed everything up.

"No, no, Seb, I'm sorry, I…" Blaine apologized back, realizing what his gesture might have seemed. "I'm just… surprised"

"Well, I wasn't going to say anything, but…" Sebastian explained, a little relieved that Blaine didn't seem to hate him too much. "I guess you would have figured it out sooner or later"

"Don't be too sure of that" Blaine mumbled, remembering how many times Sam had told him how clueless he sometimes was. "But these feelings you have…"

"Blaine, I don't have feelings for you. I'm in love with you" Sebastian explained with a sad smile that immediately broke Blaine's heart.

"I'm… sorry" Blaine repeated, as he felt it was the only thing he could say.

"What about? It's not your fault. Or mine. It's just a fact"

"So… did you really mean it when you said you came to New York for me?" Blaine asked, hoping against hope that he would receive a negative answer.

"Well, not exactly. What I told you about how I've always wanted to live in New York was true, I would have come anyway. But… we didn't meet by chance" he admitted, blushing embarrassedly, hoping Blaine wouldn't get mad at what he was about to confess. "I had been stalking your facebook and your friends' too, and that Asian friend of yours? Tina, is it? She said where you were all going that night in her status, so I decided to take a chance"

"But…" Blaine decided to ignore Sebastian's familiar manipulative methods because he still felt sorry for him. "We haven't even spoken in years. How can you still… It doesn't make sense"

"I haven't been in love with you all this time, if that's what you're wondering about. But I've thought about you a lot… Sure, I've had a lot of flings and even a couple of more serious relationships, but as soon as they were over, my mind always came back to you. I don't know why, I guess you made quite an impression on me back in high school. I thought I was over you a long time ago, but somehow you always came back into my mind. And when Trent told me you and Kurt had broken up… I thought _why don't I give it a chance_? It was worth the try, to meet you again and see where that would lead us"

"So you just wanted to give it a try?"

"Yes. But then we started hanging out, talking on the phone, being good friends, and having all those deep conversations, and you are always so understanding and funny and sweet and… perfect" Sebastian confessed without a trace of embarrassment, making Blaine blush at the appraisal. "Maybe we were too young before, or circumstances got in the way, but I realized I never really knew you back at high school and… I never expected to fall for you like I have. But it happened. And I'm sorry"

"Don't be sorry, please" Blaine pleaded, still feeling incredibly guilty even if he didn't know about what exactly.

"And I didn't expect for you to be so out of reach, either" Sebastian added, and Blaine immediately knew what he was talking about.

"Sebastian, Sam and I…" Blaine tried to explain, but Sebastian didn't need him to.

"I know. Believe me, I know, in spite of how it pisses me off" Sebastian explained with a chuckle, even if his heart was filled with sorrow at the moment.

"So you aren't trying to…"

"I know what you're afraid of, but I'm not going to do anything, Blaine" Sebastian guaranteed him, and he sounded so honest that Blaine really wanted to believe him. "All I want is for us to keep being friends"

"You aren't going to do anything? You've certainly changed since high school, Seb" Blaine answered, only half joking.

"Or maybe it was you the one who changed"

"What do you mean?"

"Back then, if I have to be honest with you, I couldn't care less that you were with Kurt. Even if I might have been wrong, I felt like I had a chance against him"

"You didn't" Blaine contradicted him with an amused smile.

"Oh, I just took the wrong way, babe" Sebastian answered with a cheeky smirk, and Blaine was almost glad to see a bit of the old Sebastian back, instead of the heartbroken version of him sitting in front of him right now. "Maybe if I hadn't almost blinded you, we might have become an issue" he dared to joke, glad to elicit a little smile from his friend.

"Ok, maybe you haven't changed that much" Blaine joked back.

"I told you. But you did"

"I still don't get it"

"Back then I tried to woo you because I thought I could win" Sebastian sincerely explained. "But I see you now with Sam, I see how you look at him, and… I know I don't stand a chance. Even further than that, I don't even want to try to get that away from you"

"Really?"

"Of course, Blaine. I love you, it's as simple as that" Sebastian explained with a shrug of his shoulders, and Blaine believed him, secretly proud to hear how his love for Sam was so obvious. "And that's why I want you to be happy. And I know Sam gives you that and much more, so… I guess that's enough for me"

"I don't want to hurt you" Blaine answered, his voice so soft it was almost a whisper, and he would have given in to his impulse to shed a few tears if he didn't feel it would be so selfish of him. It was Sebastian the one hurting, the one with a broken heart, not him.

"It's not like you are doing it on purpose, are you?" Sebastian answered, and Blaine was horrified to see his eyes getting glassy.

"Maybe if we stopped seeing each other until…" Blaine tried, desperate to find a way to make it all better.

"No, Blaine, please" Sebastian almost begged. "Apart from my feelings for you, you were the only one who cared enough to really be my friend. Before and now. You were the only one to see some good in me, and you did it again after all I did to you. I don't want to lose that. You're really a remarkable person and I still want to be your friend. What I told Sam is true: I want to get to know him too so we can get along. I want to do things right"

"Are you going to be alright?" Blaine asked in all honesty as he noticed Sebastian underhandedly capturing a stray tear falling down his cheek.

"Of course, come on, it's me we're talking about! I don't do feelings!" Sebastian joked, trying to make light of the situation, though Blaine knew better.

* * *

><p>Back at his apartment that night, as Blaine lay in Sam's chest on the sofa like practically every night, safe and loved in the warmth of his arms, he couldn't stop thinking about Sebastian's revelation. He hadn't seen that coming at all; maybe he was as oblivious as Sam told him that night they fought. Or maybe he was so happy with Sam that he was incapable of seeing other people might develop feelings towards them, even if they were never going to be reciprocated.<p>

Even if rationally he knew it was not his fault, as he had never intentionally led him on, he still felt bad that Sebastian was hurting because of him; sure Sebastian had tried to reassure him that he was not to blame, that he would eventually get over it and that he still hoped they could be friends. But that didn't stop Blaine from feeling guilty. He knew what it was to be in love with someone that wasn't going to love you back. And it hurt.

"Is everything okay?" Sam's soft and caring voice, as the hand that moved to idly play with his ear, took him out of his reverie. "You are so quiet"

"I'm always quite" Blaine answered with a mischievous smile that elicited a chuckle from his boyfriend.

"Yeah, right" Sam answered sarcastically. "You're usually not loud at all"

"I'm not loud" Blaine protested, trying to sound playful, but Sam could see his heart was not into it.

"Come on, spill it out" Sam insisted, ruffling his hair until Blaine groaned in protest. "I want to know what's got my little ball of sunshine so pensive"

"You were right" Blaine blurted out, in a sudden urge to share his feelings with the person who knew him better than he knew himself, as the palm of his hand lazily traced patterns all across Sam's chest in an unconscious attempt or reassurance for what he was about to hear.

"I'm right about a lot of things, you'll have to be more specific" Sam joked, still trying to lighten the atmosphere, as it suddenly felt so heavy.

"Sebastian" Blaine simply answered, and he felt the hand Sam had in his hair suddenly freeze.

"What did he do?" Sam asked, immediately alert and protective. "Did he do something to you?"

"No, don't worry" Blaine immediately reassured him, and he felt Sam letting all the air he had been holding out, as his hand started playing with Blaine's curls again.

"Then how was I right?" Sam asked, calmer but still apprehensive.

"He told me he's in love with me"

"Oh" It was all Sam could say, suddenly speechless as Blaine had been only a few hours before.

"And that we didn't meet by chance when he moved to New York, 'cause he was hoping to start… something with me" Blaine explained, careful to choose the right words so Sam wouldn't go crazy.

"I'm going to kill him" Sam angrily threatened anyway, the movie they were watching completely forgotten by now.

"Wait, Sam" Blaine said, rising from his chest so they could talk face to face. "He also told me that this was his original plan. But after seeing you and me together… he doesn't think there's anything he can do to pull us apart, nor he wants to. He said he saw it in the way I look at you" Blaine explained with a proud smile that mirrored in Sam's face for a second. That they were meant to be was not news for them, of course. But to see it was so obvious for those around them too…

"So what now? You still want to be friends with him?" Sam asked, pretty sure about what the answer was going to be.

"I guess… I just feel bad for him" Blaine answered, lowering his gaze in a sad way, though he made sure to pick Sam's hand in his so he would understand he didn't want anything with Sebastian beyond a friendship.

"It's hardly your fault he has feelings for you… Nor that I would blame him either, I can really understand" Sam gently joked, putting his free hand under Blaine's chin to raise his face so their gazes would meet again.

"But I can't just ditch him because he has a crush on me" Blaine pleaded for Sam to understand.

"He doesn't have a crush, B, he is in love with you" Sam reminded him without a trace of reproach in his voice.

"Whatever. But I know what it feels like to love someone who is not going to love you back"

"Blaine, if you're talking about the crush you had on me back in high school…"

"That wasn't just a crush either, Sam" Blaine interrupted him, and it shocked Sam to no ends that, after all those years, he hadn't been completely aware of how deep Blaine's feelings for him had been back in high school.

"Wasn't it?" Sam asked, in utter shock.

"No, not at all" Blaine said, his eyes lost in the remembrance of the silent pain he had endured in that time of his life. "And what if you hadn't wanted to have anything to do with me when you found out about it?"

"I would have never done that, you were my friend" Sam reassured him, rhythmically caressing the back of the hand Blaine still had in his with his own thumb.

"Well, he is my friend too"

"It's not the same, Blaine. You were my best friend, my bro, and I trusted you a hundred per cent. You had never been predatory to me, you had never acted on your feelings for me so there was no reason for me to worry about it. That hardly applies to Sebastian, though, right? I remember him back at high school and he was practically stalking you. Even though you told him you had a boyfriend, he still kept trying not so subtly to get into your pants. He even threw a rock-salted slushee at him, almost blinding you in the process, for God's sake!"

"That was a long time ago" Blaine mumbled defensively, knowing that Sam had a point.

"Maybe, but forgive me if I don't trust him" Sam added, but then decided to soften his tone, because it wasn't Blaine the one he felt angry at, after all. "But I do trust you and your good judgment, so I'm not going to try and stop you from being friends with him if you think that's what you need to do, 'cause I know you and above all you need to do what you think it's right. But I'm sure you'll understand if I can't be really happy about it or trust him not to hurt you"

"Yes, Sam, of course I understand" Blaine answered with a reassuring smile as his arms went around his boyfriend to embrace him strongly, grateful for his worries. "It even turns me on a little when you are so primal and protective"

"Really?" Sam asked with a chuckle, glad that Blaine didn't seem as troubled as a while before.

"Yeah. You look so hot when you do your best caveman impression" Blaine joked as he broke the embrace to peck Sam's willing lips, and then he fell on Sam's chest again as he let himself be engulfed into his arms, feeling as if a weight had been taken off his shoulders as he shared his worries with the love of his life.

Happy and secure in each other's warmth, they continued watching TV quietly, Blaine's lips pressing tiny kisses in Sam's chest every now and then, until the latter realized something that broke their comfortable silence.

"Did you just call me primal?" Sam asked with an amused expression.

"But in a good way" Blaine was quick to reassure him with an amused grin, looking up to meet his gaze.

"I didn't know there was a good way to call someone primal, but alright" Sam relented with a smile as his arms brought Blaine even closer to him.

* * *

><p><strong><em>AN:_**_Ok, so I think I finally realized what my problem with this story is and why i'm so insecure about it. With part 1, there was a main and clear objective, and all the story went towards that goal. With this sequel... it doesn't work like that. Sure, there are like three different plots on it (or there will be), but none of them seems to fluently take control of the story, but are just... happening. And well, I guess it's a different way to tell a story._

_So now I've decided to stop worrying about it. Even if the sequel is clearly a worse story than part 1, I've decided to enjoy every chapter individually and see how it comes. I hope you'll still be able to enjoy it too! And thank you everyone that keeps reading and reviewing these, you guys make it all worth it!_


	6. Chapter 6

_As always..._

**_StyxxandBethany:_**_thank you so much, it feels good to see there are people who doesn't think you're screwing up! ;) And yeah, I also needed a softer Sebastian... Thank you so much!_

**_Guest:_**_ hahaha, Sebastian and Cooper will meet, but unfortunately they're not going to be involved (there is the age difference, and Cooper is so not ready for a relationship!). The idea of someone from work, though, sounds more plausible to me... Thank you!_

**_Me-Me157:_**_ No, thank you for realizing that it's not as much Sebastian being out of character as him being more mature than in his high school years. Of course he won't get between Blam (I would never let that happen), and he's going to be good, but he still has a lot to say in this story! :) I'm so glad you like all the balm fluffiness, because I don't seem to be able to stop writing it! Thank you so much, sweetie!_

**_Raiderva: _**_I'm so glad you're still enjoying it! I love how you appreciate the small and intimate moments between them, because I think this story is based solely in them! :) Thank you so much!_

* * *

><p><strong>CHAPTER 6<strong>

Sam lazily stretched his arms in front of him as he entered some little coffee shop he had passed by. He had woken up a little earlier than usual, feeling rested and refreshed, so there really was no sense in staying in bed. Noticing Blaine was curled to his side, peacefully asleep with the tiniest smile on his face, he almost changed his mind, but finally he carefully extricated himself from his boyfriend's embrace, rested a kiss on his forehead, and dressed himself to go for a run. He had been quite obsessed with taking care of his body when he was younger –in fact, he clearly remembered Blaine being quite worried about it back in high school, trying to get him to give it a rest every now and then–, but he was not anymore. Sure, he still watched what he ate most of the time, but he allowed himself some treats every now and then. Though, if he had to be honest with himself, he had been starting to feel a bit out of shape lately, so he had decided to exercise a bit again. And a morning run seemed like the perfect way to do it.

He was, indeed, in a poorer shape that he had anticipated, because he got tired after only a little while –_one step at a time, Evans_, he tried to convince himself–, and decided to grab a coffee, even if he was not a big fan of them, to get some extra energy before going back home. Plus he could bring Blaine some bagels. He loved spoiling his boyfriend like nothing else in the world, and the adoring smile Blaine gave him in response whenever he did, like Sam was his superhero, was also a good incentive.

He had already gotten his order and was about to leave the place when someone got in his way and stopped him from giving one more step with a strong hand to his shoulder.

"If it isn't Sam Evans!" the intruder almost yelled.

"Puck!" Sam's face broke into a wide grin when he recognized his old friend. "Is that really you?"

"Last time I checked, that was me!" Puck answered with a hearty laugh.

"Oh my God, I can't believe it!" Sam exclaimed, happily giving his friend a quick but warm hug. "What are you doing here?"

"I work here!" Puck answered, pointing at his apron and leaving the tray he was carrying on the table nearest to him to talk to Sam.

"No, I mean in the city! I thought you were in Los Angeles!"

"Oh, I was there for some time, but I've been wandering around since then, I'm not really fond of staying too long in one place, and I thought it was about time to give New York a chance" Puck explained, shrugging his shoulders. He hadn't changed at all! "But hey, what about you? I surely never expected you to find your place in the big apple! Sure I knew you were heading this way when you finished high school, but I pictured you back in Kentucky by now! New York is such an immense and cold city for someone like you! How are you surviving it?"

"Well, it helps when you have someone warming up your home" Sam explained, with dreamy eyes and fond smile.

"Oh, you bastard" Puck laughed at Sam's obviously happy expression. "So you're living with someone?"

"Yeah, I am" Sam answered, his smile growing even bigger.

"Do I know this person?" Puck asked, even if he knew chances were slim, though Sam's smile proved him wrong.

"In fact, you do. It's Blaine" Sam answered, and his smile looked so fond and proud that Puck felt utterly confused.

"Oh, but I didn't mean a roommate" Puck said after a second. Of course, he had forgotten how close those two had become in their senior year –after all, he hadn't been there to witness is, having graduated the year prior to them–, but even then he wouldn't have expected them to still be sharing an apartment after all those years. Shouldn't Blaine be married to Kurt by then, by the way? "I thought you were talking about a life partner"

"I was" Sam answered in confusion.

"Ok, I'm lost here right now" Puck answered, and suddenly Sam felt he wouldn't like were that conversation was going.

"Blaine and I are together, and we have been for some time now" Sam explained, though he didn't think such an obvious situation needed so much explanation.

"Last I heard, you two were just sharing an apartment"

"It was never _just sharing_ but yeah, we were, we've been living together since we moved to New York. But we are in a relationship now, we've been together for… eight months actually, although it feels like we've been together all the time"

"You're kidding me, right?" Puck asked, his eyes squinting at his friend for confirmation.

"No, why would I?" Sam asked back, slightly annoyed by then.

"Because you're not gay!" Puck retorted, feeling stupid for needing to state the obvious. "Or you weren't back when I knew you!"

"I'm not into labels, you know? I only know I love Blaine like I've never loved anyone before, and that's the only thing that matters to me" Sam answered, trying to stay calm at Puck's offensive ignorance. Ok, so maybe he had changed, after all.

"Ok, this is a joke, right? You're pulling my leg and I fell into it, didn't I?" Puck said with a chuckle, playfully punching Sam's arm for good measure, but he was surprised when the frown of the blond boy didn't disappear.

"No, Puck, I'm not. What's the matter with you?" Sam reproached him.

"What's the matter with me? I didn't turn gay overnight!" Puck retorted, sure by now that his old friend had gone crazy.

"Are you serious?" Sam asked, astounded at the other man's attitude.

"It's so confusing! You were one of the guys! We were like best bros!"

"Oh, so now I'm with a boy I can't be one of the guys? I'm still the same person I was, you know"

"Apparently not. Maybe you're just confused. I know you and Blaine were very close, maybe all those years living together gave you the wrong idea…" Puck tried to explain, wanting to help his friend in his own twisted way. "Maybe you should try moving out or something, I don't know…"

"Are you seriously trying to convince me to break up with my boyfriend?" Sam asked, and he realized he had probably never feel so outraged in his life as he was feeling right now. "So you think I'll just stop caring about the love of my life like that just because it doesn't sit right with you?"

"Did you just hear yourself? You surely didn't talk like that back in high school"

"Well, thankfully some of us did some maturing over the years! Why does it matter to you, anyway? We haven't kept in contact for years! It's not like I'm going to spread my fairy dust all over you, right?"

"Like Blaine did to you, you mean?" Puck sarcastically retorted, and for a moment he felt genuine fear at the flash of anger that crossed Sam's gaze at the mention of his boyfriend.

"I dare you to say just one bad thing about Blaine" Sam threatened, almost wishing Puck would give him an excuse to punch the lights out of him right in that moment. "Who, by the way, I thought was one of the guys for you too. Now I see it was all pretend, and you're just a fucking homophobe"

"I'm not" Puck tried to deny. "I don't have a problem with Blaine, I swear, but you…"

"And you know what? We never were best bros. I've had the best of bros for years and I can tell you he would have never judged me like you just did. I just feel sorry I once considered you a friend, as it's obvious you never were. I'm sorry I ran into you" Sam said as a goodbye before passing by Puck without even looking back at him and headed for the door, suddenly in a powerful need to of some fresh air to cool down his killing urges.

* * *

><p>Blaine was getting in the shower when he heard the door of the apartment closing a little more forcefully than usually. But that was Sam, sometimes he didn't seem to control his strength, Blaine thought with a smile. Unless he had purposefully slammed the door, which would mean he was upset over something. And Blaine surely didn't like that idea.<p>

As he washed himself, he was kind of expecting for his boyfriend to appear, using the excuse of not wasting the hot water to get into the shower with him instead of expecting his turn, but he didn't. Blaine tried to hide his disappointment as he got dressed, trying not to worry too much about why would Sam would be so upset that he would willingly pass on a hot shower with him, and then he went in search of his dreamy boyfriend.

He didn't have to look very far, as he found him sitting on the couch, with his laptop open on the coffee table in front of him. And he looked, indeed, a bit upset.

"Morning, love" Sam immediately greeted him when he appeared, his smile lacking of his usual sparkle.

Blaine took profit of the fact that Sam was sitting on the edge of the couch to kneel behind him on the sofa and wrap himself around the upper half of his body as he lazily rested his face in the back of Sam's shoulder.

"Morning, honey" he answered, resting a kiss on the nape of his neck that elicited a peaceful sigh from the blond.

"Did you sleep well?" Sam asked him tenderly, his hand moving to his own shoulder, where Blaine's head was still perched, to fondly run his fingers through the soft and still damp curls.

"Great" Blaine answered, giving Sam's neck a last kiss before resting his chin on the blond's shoulder. "But I woke up and you weren't there. I missed you"

"Yeah, sorry about that. I woke up and I felt too restless to stay in bed, so I went for a run" Sam answered with a chuckle because Blaine was playfully biting his earlobe.

"You could have woken me up. We could have found other ways to exercise, if you know what I mean" Blaine joked, almost in a whisper, trying to sound seductive, and Sam marveled at how easy it was for his anger to dissipate as soon as he was wrapped into his boyfriend's arms, when he knew Blaine had already figured out he was upset and was trying to make him feel better even if he still didn't know what was wrong with him. And stupid Puck had dared to put their wonderful and loving and perfect relationship in doubt…

"Sweetie, I always know what you mean" Sam answered with a chuckle, refusing to let stupid Puck ruin any beautiful moment he shared with his beautiful boyfriend. "But you looked so comfy and peaceful in your sleep, and we both know that doesn't happen that often, so I didn't have the heart to wake you. But I brought you some bagels to make myself forgiven"

"Wow, that's even better" Blaine happily exclaimed as he jumped from behind Sam and sat at his side to grab the paper bag on the table he hadn't seen until now.

"Excuse me?" Sam asked, mockingly offended.

"You know what I mean" Blaine answered apologetically, his mouth full of half a bagel by now, eliciting a wholehearted laugh from his boyfriend.

"Suddenly I'm not that sure"

"Don't be so sensitive, you're the one that left me sad and alone on an empty bed" Blaine protested with a pout.

"Such a drama queen" Sam lamented, shaking his head in feigned frustration, although he couldn't help but throwing his arm around Blaine's shoulders to bring him closer to his side until the shorter boy gave him one of his million dollar smiles.

"So… are you working on the selling of your comic book?" Blaine asked when he finished his first bagel, glancing at the laptop's screen.

"Yeah" Sam confirmed while nodding, bringing the computer to his lap without letting go of Blaine so they could lean back on the couch to cuddle together while looking at it. "Now that we have a specific date in which we'll have it, kind of a release date, I thought I'd give the buyers the option to preorder it"

"Any luck yet?" Blaine asked, lifting his face from Sam's shoulder to give him a kiss on his cheek that showed how proud he was of him.

"Actually yes, we've got like 20 orders already"

"See? Your fans were so waiting for it!"

"Pity I don't have that many fans, right?" Sam lamented, accepting one bite from the bagel Blaine was presenting in front of his face so they could share.

"But that's because they don't know you yet!" Blaine tried to reason with him. Even if the first volume hadn't had a bad reception, it still was unknown for the general masses. "I wish there was a way to promote the comic book, to get more people to discover it"

"Ok, no, I forbid you to continue" Sam warned him, pointing a finger to his face.

"What?" Blaine asked, trying to play innocent.

"I know where this is going, B. Advertising is very very expensive, and we are not going to spend another single dollar on any of this"

"But it's an investment" Blaine replied, and Sam almost felt like it was a déjà-vu, because it was Blaine's usual argument whenever they were talking about Sam's comic.

"An investment we really can't afford right now, Blaine" Sam gently reminded, now he being the one to kiss Blaine's cheek in gratitude. "Look, I appreciate how much you want to make it true, you have no idea how much I love you for that but… we have to be sensible"

"I just want you to succeed on this" Blaine relented, knowing in his heart that Sam was right. They probably wouldn't be able to pay for it even if they wanted to.

"I know. But you're being too optimistic and enthusiastic, and you're failing to be realistic"

"That's why I have you, to get my feet back on the ground"

"I guess" Sam admitted with a chuckle. "Otherwise you'd already be so high in the sky I would probably not be able to see you"

"That's what I love the most about you, how you don't like to exaggerate at all" Blaine joked, playfully punching Sam's chest as the latter squeezed him to his side. "And now are you going to tell me what's wrong with you?"

"What's wrong with me?" Sam asked back, surprised and mockingly offended.

"I mean what got you upset. I can tell you are. And what about the fact that you went for a run, and you aren't sweaty and smelly and you didn't join me in the shower?"

"Oh, so that's what bothers you" Sam joked.

"Obviously" Blaine joked back, although Sam could perfectly tell how he was just worrying about him, so he owed him to tell him about his encounter with Puck.

"Well, it's because I didn't run that much in the end" he explained. "You'll never guess who I ran into"

"Who?"

"Puckerman. Puck, I mean, not Jake"

"Really? Oh my god, it's been so long!" Blaine exclaimed, obviously excited at the prospect of Sam regaining an old friendship. "Where did you find him?"

"Oh, he was working in the place where I got the bagels"

"So how is he?"

"He is… an asshole, actually" Sam answered, not feeling the need to beat about the bush with his boyfriend.

"What? Why do you say that?" Blaine asked in surprise. He thought Sam and Puck had been good pals in high school, even if they lost contact after Puck graduated.

"He seemed like pretty offended by the fact you are my boyfriend" Sam explained, trying to be cautious because the last thing he wanted was for Blaine to get hurt because of that poor excuse of a friend Puck was.

"Why? What's wrong with me?" Blaine asked, obviously surprised and more than a little hurt.

"Well, not you per se" Sam was quick to add. "But because I am dating a boy"

"Oh" was the only thing Blaine answered. He should have known this day would come. And he hated that Sam had to go through it.

"You should have heard him! He was talking to me like either I was a completely different person or I had gone crazy!" Sam explained, his previous anger returning as he explained his previous conversation to his boyfriend. "Just because I was supposed to be straight back in high school and well, it looks like I'm not anymore, doesn't give him the right to judge me, right?"

"Did he make you feel… embarrassed about us?" Blaine asked, and Sam could tell he was kind of fearing the answer, so he quickly put his other arm around Blaine too and brought him fully on his chest.

"No, B" he instantly reassured him, and he was glad Blaine seemed to believe him immediately. "How could I ever be embarrassed of you? In fact, you were the first thing I told him about, and he can go to hell if he doesn't see how much I love you. It's just… it hurts to be judged like that, especially by someone who was my bro once. Not bros like you and I were, but well… he was a friend"

"Yeah, I know" Blaine answered, comfortingly caressing Sam's chest with the palm of his hand. "When I came out, I lost all my so-called friends. But we were pre-teenagers then, that's not supposed to happen when you're on your twenties anymore"

"It's… a shit that we have to deal with this kind of rejection in the 21st century" Sam lamented, and Blaine wished more than anything that he could erase that offending frown of his face.

"Oh, love… there is still so much way to go…" Blaine answered with a sad smile.

"But nobody had a problem with us until now" Sam replied, and he wondered if maybe he had been more than a little naïve at thinking they were never going to get any hate because of their relationship.

"I know. Everything's gone so smoothly until now and everybody was so supportive that I almost started believing you might never have to experience that kind of rejection. I wish I could have spared you that" Blaine lamented, resting a comforting kiss in Sam's chest.

"Well, it's not like I mortally wounded, B" Sam answered, trying to make light of the situation so his boyfriend didn't have to worry about him too much. "That's nothing compared with everything you've been through"

"I still wish you hadn't had to feel judged like that. If I had Puck in front of me right now, I think I'd just… punch him" he said, and he looked so serious and cute that Sam could only laugh.

"Aw, that's so sweet…" Sam said while stroking the top of Blaine's head. "Twisted, but sweet"

"Well, apparently I can go on caveman mode too" Blaine joked, looking up adoringly at his boyfriend and giving a quick but comforting peck to his lips. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah" Sam answered, reciprocating the tender gesture with a kiss to Blaine's forehead. "I don't want to let some damned bastard ruin my day, even if he was supposed to be my friend. But it leaves you thinking, you know? It just showed me how wrong we can judge people sometimes. For example, I've been talking shit about Sebastian for so long, and I'm starting to see that I might have been wrong about him all along. And then there's Puck, whom I would have risked my neck for, and he just turned out to be an homophobic bastard"

"He never seemed to have a problem with me, or Kurt, back at high school, though" Blaine answered, reminiscing back to their high school days. "We never had much of a relationship, but he was never rude to us"

"No, apparently he just tolerated you" Sam admitted, not wanting to hurt his boyfriend but not wanting to lie to him either. "But I guess it's not the same when it's about someone who was one of his friends, one of the dudes, you know? And if I have to be honest, apart from the fact he tried to convince me to just leave you, what hurt me the most was how he implied that he never cared that much about you, because you weren't one of us"

"That's what hurt you the most?" Blaine asked, in complete awe.

"Yeah" Sam confirmed.

"I wonder how many more times in my life I'll think I can't possibly love you more, and then you will go and prove me wrong" Blaine said, snuggling closer to Sam's chest.

"I hope there will be a lot of them" Sam answered, blushing at his boyfriend's appraisal, before they shared a knowing smile and a loving kiss.

"Now take that smirk off your face, and get back to work, I'm not going to be sweet-talking to you all day, I've got things to do" Blaine joked once the kiss broke, but the adoring smile on his face clearly belied his words.

"You're going to be late, by the way" Sam warned him half-heartedly as he cupped Blaine's both cheeks and brought his face closer so he could join their lips again in a slow kiss.

"I'm not" Blaine answered against Sam's lips, too lost in the pleasure that were his boyfriend's lips against his to care about anything else. "Maybe I could take the day off"

"Not that I'd let you, but you'd do that for me?"

"Well, it would be a little for me too. You know, the idea of spending the day lazing around in the sofa with only kissing your lips as a prospect…"

"Have I told you recently that I love you?" Sam said as he kissed Blaine more passionately and gently pushed him onto his back to lie on top of him, but the change in positions let Blaine see the clock hanging from the wall and realize he was, indeed, running late.

"Shit, I _am_ going to be late" he exclaimed as he broke the kiss and slipped from under his boyfriend's broader body and literally ran to the door.

"I love it when you go all romantic in me" Sam said to his boyfriend's retreating back with an amused, yet slightly disappointed, smile.

"Sorry, honey" Blaine answered in a rush over his shoulder as he put on his jacket, but he still took the time to turn around and send a flying kiss to his beloved boyfriend. "Love you!" he almost yelled from already outside the door, and Sam could only laugh at his partner's antics.

* * *

><p>Blaine looked nervously at his watch as he left the theatre. Damn, he had almost been late for rehearsal that morning and now, after a whole day of hard work that seemed as it would never end, he was definitely late for his weekly coffee with Sebastian. He quickly sent a message to his friend, apologizing and warning him about his delay, and then started walking towards the coffee shop where he was supposed to meet Sebastian. He was glad he was meeting his friend, because he had a lot going on in his head and he really needed to have some fun.<p>

First, there was this thing with Sam and his encounter with Puck. Of course he hadn't said anything to his boyfriend, because he had needed the comfort, but it had really shaken him. How could someone who was supposed to be a friend judge such a wonderful person as Sam like that? Maybe he hadn't been mortally wounded, as he said, but he had been upset enough, and anybody who upset Sam in any way had Blaine's immediate dislike. And to know Puck had never considered him one of the guys also stung a little, if he was honest to himself. But the worst was how he had shattered Sam's illusion that the whole world was ready for them to be together. Up until then, they hadn't been forced to face any rejection, apart from funny gazes and even some whispering every time they were affectionate in public –especially if they kissed–. But those came from strangers, from people they didn't give a shit about. Up until then, not a friendly face had had any problem with their relationship. And Blaine hated that Puck had destroyed Sam's innocence.

And then there was the thing with Sam's comic. He wasn't as naïve and optimistic as Sam thought: he was a little worried that, without the proper advertising, the comic book wouldn't reach a big enough audience to make them recover their investment. He wasn't worried about the money at all, obviously: they both made good wages now, and if they had managed to survive on part-time jobs during their student years, they could do it now. But he worried about Sam's dream, and how bad he would feel if he _failed_, and Blaine was sure he wouldn't want to continue if they had to struggle with a third release on their own.

And then there were the rehearsals. Even if he didn't feel so inexperienced and pathetic as he did in the beginning, there was a rare atmosphere in the place lately, as if something was not going right. None of the actors had any idea of what was happening –although they had felt it too– but there were a lot of shushed conversations between directors and producers, a lot of nerves and bad moods, delays in the arrival of wardrobe and decorations… He probably didn't need to worry so much, as maybe that was just the usual nerves until a production was finished and ready for the audience, but it still made him uneasy…

And there he was, again letting his head spin with so much going on inside of it. He still had a good ten minutes until he reached his destination, so maybe taking advantage of the time would be a good idea. He could call Cooper, that would be a nice distraction while he walked! Plus he hadn't spoken to him in more than a week, it would be nice to hear his voice.

"Hey, squirt" Cooper answered soon after Blaine dialed his number.

"Don't call me that" Blaine answered through force of habit, as they always started their telephonic conversations like that –and the truth was Blaine wouldn't have it any other way.

"Yeah, buddy, keep dreaming" Cooper answered in an amused voice, knowing Blaine loved their stupid interaction as much as he did. "So what's up?"

"Nothing really. Can I just miss my old brother here?"

"Aw, look at you going all sentimental instead of insulting me as you usually do!" Cooper never missed the chance to tease his little brother, didn't he? "Should I be worrying? Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yeah, I'm alright, you insensitive moron" Blaine answered with a chuckle.

"Oh, there's the insult, I can stop worrying now" Cooper sarcastically replied.

"I'm already regretting calling you"

"Don't be silly, you know I always love talking to my little brother" Cooper answered, more honestly this time. "So what's up? How are the rehearsals going?"

"Pretty good, actually. I think I'm starting to get the hang out of it" Blaine answered, deciding to omit the part about the production problems until he was sure they weren't product of his imagination and centering instead on his own job.

"See? I knew that was a piece of cake for my little brother" Cooper said, only half joking.

"Your faith in me moves me, Cooper" Blaine answered sarcastically.

"Hey, don't be like that, I know I was very hard on you when you were little, but it was just because I could see much potential in you…"

"Yeah, you already told me that that time you came to McKinley to give a seminar on pointing, remember?" Blaine couldn't help but tease him, knowing how that memory embarrassed his brother all those years later.

"It was an acting class!" Cooper tried to defend himself, even if he was feeling mortified, as Blaine got to laugh at him for once, instead of the other way around.

"Yeah, right"

"But I haven't been that bad since then, have I?" Cooper asked, a little apprehensively. Ever since Blaine had confessed all those years ago how much he had hurt him along the years, Cooper had tried to be the perfect big brother.

"No, you've been the best of brothers since then" Blaine answered, without a trace of sarcasm in his voice.

"And what about Sam's comic book?" Cooper changed the subject before he could get too emotional. He didn't need any more embarrassment today. "Is it finished already?"

"Yes, it is, and being printed right now. It will be released through the internet in like a week or so"

"Wow, that's great. I bet he is excited"

"Not really, to tell you the truth" Blaine confessed, feeling glad he had his brother to talk to. "He is too afraid it won't go well and we'll lose our money"

"And do you think it will go well?" Cooper asked.

"I don't know, Cooper… The book is great, even better than the first one, and I'm not saying this because he is my boyfriend… It is really good"

"I know, squirt, I read the first one"

"Then you know how good it is. But… how can it be a success if people don't get to know it, you know? Without the publicity?"

"Have you thought about advertising?"

"Yes, of course, but it's too expensive" Blaine lamented.

"Maybe I could help you there, I've got some savings…" Cooper started to offer, but Blaine was having none of it.

"No, Coop, thank you" Blaine interrupted his brother.

"You didn't even let me finish"

"Because there's no need. I love you, Coop, you're the best brother ever, you know?"

"Yeah, I know" Cooper sarcastically replied.

"But Sam is feeling bad enough that we used our own money, if we add yours to the equation I think his head will explode. And he would never forgive me if I accepted it"

"Well, I can understand that so I won't insist, but if you change your mind…"

"Don't be so quick to spend your money, big brother. If we go bankrupt maybe we'll have to move to your apartment and you'll have to support us" Blaine joked.

"I'll buy you a house in New York myself before having you here ruining my love life with your presence"

"You mean… your sex life?"

"Hey, I put a lot of love in it!"

"I'm sure of that!" Blaine laughed before groaning at a particularly loud motorbike passing him by.

"What are you doing at the street, by the way?" Cooper asked, after hearing all the noise through his brother's phone. "Shouldn't you be at home with your hubby as the old married couple you are at this hour?"

"I'm meeting my friend Sebastian today" Blaine answered.

"Who's Sebastian? Why does that name ring a bell to me?"

"Oh…" Blaine hesitated, not wanting to remind his brother of the slushee incident. "I already knew him back in high school. He was at Dalton"

"Is this the one who almost made you lose an eye?" Cooper asked, finally putting two and two together.

"Yeah, that's the one" Blaine was forced to admit.

"What the hell are you doing with that jerk?"

"Don't insult him, we are friends now. He's changed a lot, and there is something that is called _forgiveness_, you should try it sometime"

"Oh, forgiving may come easier if I hadn't had to see you writhing in pain after your surgery" Cooper reminded him.

"Not you too, Coop, please" Blaine pleaded. "Sam is finally coming around with our friendship, I don't have the energy to convince you too"

"And why would Sam accept him as a friend for you? He is even worse than I am!"

"Because he is a wonderful boyfriend and he loves me and he trusts me. Don't you love me and trust me too?"

"That's playing dirty, little brother, and you know it" Cooper protested in a joking tone, and was glad when he elicited a chuckle from his brother.

"Sure, Coop, but…" Blaine started answering, still with laughter on his voice, but suddenly he stopped talking and Cooper heard some rustling noise, as if Blaine was fidgeting with the phone, instead of speaking through it.

"Blaine?" Cooper asked, puzzled about the situation. "Blainey, you there?"

Cooper was starting to get slightly worried, as he didn't understand why Blaine had suddenly stopped talking. He obviously hadn't run out of battery, as the line hadn't gone dead yet, and he wasn't out of network coverage either because Cooper could hear all the typical noise street around Blaine. It wasn't until he could hear Blaine's voice again, from a distance and with a hint of fear in his voice, that Cooper understood what was happening.

"What do you want?" Blaine said, but Cooper knew he wasn't talking to him by how far away he sounded. He probably wasn't even holding the phone himself anymore.

"Blaine?" Cooper tried again, knowing it was stupid as Blaine was not going to answer, probably not even hear it, but it came out as an instinct. "Blaine!" he shouted again, trying not to get into a panic, but then the line went dead and it was all Cooper could do to stop himself from punching the nearest wall.

He thought about calling the police of New York, but he realized he had no idea where Blaine was; he only knew he was on the street. But wait, maybe Sam would know where he was. He didn't want to scare Sam unnecessarily, as he knew he was probably overreacting about an absurd situation. But what if he wasn't? He'd apologize to Sam later for giving him such a fright, but if calling him meant a chance to stop something happening to Blaine he would take it.

Pity that Sam wasn't answering his phone.

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><p><em><strong>AN: **hehehe, it had been soooo long without a good nice cliffhanger... ;)_


	7. Chapter 7

_As always..._

**_StyxxandBethany: _**_hahaha, you're right, Blaine is going to be the death of Cooper one of these days ;) Oh don't worry, there is going to be a lot of Sebastian in this new chapter... I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter, I hope you like this new one just the same. Thank you so much!__  
><em>

**_Jov: _**_you'll have to read this one to find out ;) Thank you!_

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><p><strong>CHAPTER 7<strong>

"What do you want?" Blaine asked, his heart pounding with fear at the two men standing in front of him, one of them with his own phone still in his hands.

Before they said a word, the man holding his phone threw it violently to the floor –which scared Blaine ever further, because if they didn't want his valuables, what the hell did they want?– and the other one pushed Blaine roughly towards the alley behind him, probably to get out of the open for… whatever they were planning to do. If darkness suited them better, it couldn't be a good sign.

"What do you want?" Blaine repeated, trying not to sound as scared as he felt, when he felt himself being roughly pinned to the wall by some strong hands holding him around the neck, stopping any possible movement to defend himself.

"Oh look, the little faggot has some nerve" the man holding him told the other with a chuckle. So that was it: they wanted to take the lights out of him because he was gay. But how did they know…? Wait, wasn't he loudly talking about his boyfriend and how much he loved him on the phone when they took it from him? While alone in an almost deserted street when the sun was already down? He would have slapped his own forehead for his stupidity if he wasn't being held against his will at the moment.

Blaine knew he was screwed. He had been there before and he knew that, whatever he said, those guys only wanted to hurt him. They weren't going for his valuables, or trying to convince him of something, or wanting to make a point: they were only looking to inflict pain and fear on him. And if Blaine was something, that was a fighter and he wasn't going to go down without a fight. So looking for a distraction that could get him free from the guy's grip, he decidedly spat on his face.

The other man, in surprise, lessened the grip as one of his hands went to his face to get rid of the offending residue of Blaine's spit, and with a last glimpse of Sam's face on his mind and the wish he would get to see him again, Blaine threw a powerful punch directly to the man's jaw –for once, feeling very grateful of all the years he had practiced boxing.

* * *

><p>Sebastian looked all around himself for what it felt like the hundredth time, looking for any sign of Blaine. When he received Blaine's message telling him he was running late, he didn't feel like just sitting there in the cafe, waiting for him, so he had started walking towards the theatre Blaine worked in with the intention of meeting him halfway so they could walk the rest of the way together. But that had been a good ten minutes ago; he should have met him by now.<p>

Afraid they might have taken different routes, Sebastian took his phone out of his pocket and dialed Blaine's number. As he stood there, waiting for his friend to pick it up, he thought he heard some music: some phone ringing, even if there wasn't anyone near enough for him to hear their ringtones. As he walked closer to the source of the music, he was surprised to discover it was _Wake me up before you go go_, by Wham, and he perfectly remembered that was Blaine's ringtone from that time Sam had called him during one of their weekly coffees and Sebastian had spent five minutes laughing at him for his song selection.

As he gave another step, he was both surprised and more than a little scared to find a phone lying forgotten on the floor. The screen was cracked, as if it had received a hard blow, but it still worked, and only one touch at it revealed a picture of Sam and Blaine with their arms around each other, Sam smiling impossibly wide at the camera as Blaine kissed his cheek. There was no doubt about it, that was Blaine's phone. So what in God's name was it doing, broken and forgotten, lying on the floor? And where the hell was its owner?

* * *

><p>The man was left momentarily stunned when Blaine's fist impacted on his jaw, and he was made to retreat a couple of steps from the force of it. Blaine, expecting that, immediately reacted and tried to flee from the place, but the other guy was fast enough to grab his arms from behind and put a stop to his escape.<p>

"If you think I'm going to let a fucking queer get away with this…" the first man said in the most menacing voice as he brought his thumb to the corner of his mouth to clean the blood Blaine's well-aimed punch had caused.

"People as sick as you are should be exterminated" the man holding him threatened from behind as he held him with a surprising strength that made Blaine's attempts to disentangle himself from his grip completely futile.

"We could start with you" the other one announced just before lifting his punch and hitting Blaine straight in his right eye with all the strength that he had.

* * *

><p>Sebastian was getting frantic with fear as he looked and looked around him, hoping to get a glimpse of Blaine anywhere. He had to be near, and he was probably in trouble, considering the state he had found his phone in. He had to help him, but what could he do?<p>

Finally he realized there was an alley in the other side of the street, just in front of the place where he had found the phone. A million terrifying thoughts race through Sebastian's head at the implications that Blaine could be there. But he had to find out, obviously, so with his heart in his throat, he ran to it and dared to take a peek. And what he saw left him petrified.

* * *

><p>"How does that feel, you little faggot?" the man who had hit him asked Blaine, grabbing him by the hair to lift his face so he would look at him. "Are you going to cry like a little lady?"<p>

"Go to hell" Blaine answered, his voice full of pride in spite of the explosion of pain he was feeling on the side of his face. He knew it didn't matter what he said, it didn't matter if he made them angry or begged for mercy, the result was going to be the same.

As he had predicted, his words seemed to enrage the man, who was expecting him to cry and plead like the queer he was supposed to be. So without any further comment, the man attacked again, going for his stomach this time as strongly as before and left him breathless, doubling him over in pain until the guy holding him let go of him, as he wasn't a menace anymore.

"You're going to pay for your sins" the second man said as he also grabbed Blaine's hair to make him straighten up and punched him in the face even more powerfully than his friend, to the point he sent Blaine violently towards the wall and made him hit his forehead to it. Feeling all his remaining forces leaving him all of a sudden, Blaine dizzily fell to the floor, and he lay there on his back, waiting for those guys to finish him. _I'm sorry, Sam_, he thought as the shadow of the two men approaching him blocked the light of the street lamp in front of the alley from him. _I tried to hang on_.

* * *

><p>Sebastian quickly tried to think which was the best way to act. He could just run into the alley and try to fight the men to help Blaine, but he rationally could see it was not a solution. It would be two against two, and they seemed to be much stronger than Blaine and him. Plus Blaine seemed to be pretty much out of action by then, so he wouldn't be a lot of help.<p>

He could also call the police, but he doubted they would be there on time, and those guys seemed pretty intent in hurting Blaine.

The only answer, then, would be to scare them away.

"Help! Please, I need help!" he suddenly shouted towards the main street, though loud enough that those men would hear him too. "They're attacking a defenseless boy here! Somebody help me!"

Turning towards the alley again, he was surprised and satisfied to see that one of the men had suddenly stopped with his feet in mid-air, as he clearly was going for a kick to Blaine's middle. Sebastian didn't stop to see if someone was responding to his plea of help, and took Blaine's phone to his ear as an act as he finally ran into the alley.

"I'm calling the police right now!" he announced when the two guys seemed to hesitate for a moment, but then he heard footsteps behind him and closed his eyes in relief when he realized someone was coming to their rescue.

"Get out of the way!" one of the guys yelled at him as he starting running in the opposite direction, trying to escape the situation in fear of getting caught, and he even threw a punch at Sebastian for good measure, though he was quick to move and the fist practically only brushed his cheek.

Sebastian ignored the dull pain on his face as he desperately ran to his friend, who still had to move, glad that his ridiculous plan had worked and those two had disappeared.

Blaine felt tears coming to his eyes at the relief he felt at the moment, mixed with the pain of his injuries and the fear still running through his veins, but he refused to let them fall; he refused to let those guys win. They were not going to break him.

As he tried to gather the strength to even move, he heard someone running to him, but he realised it was Sebastian and he let himself relax: no one was going to hurt him anymore.

"Blaine! Blaine, you alright?" Sebastian asked frantically, as he kneeled next to his friend and cupped his cheek to get his attention, glad to see he was conscious.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine" Blaine answered, though his painful wince as Sebastian's hand came to his wounded forehead clearly belied his words.

"Gosh, you're bleeding" Sebastian simplified as he helped him sit up, not wanting to tell him how scary he looked with a bleeding wound on his forehead, a split lip and a dark eye.

"I'll survive" Blaine answered, trying to reassure his friend he was –mostly– alright.

"Is he alright?" a voice behind Sebastian asked, and Blaine jumped out of his skin in fear, but Sebastian calmed him down with a comforting arm around his shoulders.

"Yeah, I think so" Sebastian answered kindly to one of the three people that had come to their rescue, glad there were still good people in the world ready to help those in need. "Thank you for your help"

"We didn't do anything" another one added, dismissing his gratitude.

"You scared them away" Sebastian reminded them, before turning to his friend again. "Let me help you up" as he grabbed Blaine under his armpits and stood up to help the other. "Are you sure you're alright?"

"Yeah, I'm just a little dizzy, but it's nothing" Blaine answered, momentarily leaning against his friend until he was able to regain his balance.

"Let's take you to the hospital" Sebastian suggested, gently pushing Blaine forward as he held him around his waist, but Blaine stopped him immediately.

"No, there's no need for that, I'm feeling better already" Blaine answered, extricating himself from his friend's grip to show he was indeed able to walk on his own.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah. I only want to go home" Blaine answered in a small voice, accidnetally showing his friend how affected he really was, and who he needed the most at his side right at that moment.

"I'll take you to Sam, buddy" Sebastian promised, understanding what Blaine needed even if he hadn't said it. "Let's take a cab"

"We'll hail you one" one of the people still standing there offered, and Sebastian smiled at them in gratitude as he closely followed Blaine in case he needed his help to walk –though he seemed to be managing alright. Man, that boy surely was strong and bullheaded!

* * *

><p>Sam lifted his gaze from the drawing he was working on in the living room when he heard a familiar noise. He was surprised to hear a key finding its way into the lock of his apartment's door. Wasn't Blaine meeting Sebastian that evening after rehearsals? So what was he doing already home? Not that he wasn't glad to get more of him, though, he smiled to himself as he waited with anticipation for his boyfriend to appear behind the door.<p>

"Hey" Blaine said when he finally opened the door, and the lack of enthusiasm on his greeting immediately alerted Sam something was not right.

"Hey" he answered questioningly, looking at his boyfriend intently from his place, and if he didn't know better he would have sworn he was keeping his head down, as if to avoid meeting Sam's gaze. "What are you doing here so soon, I thought you were meeting Sebastian today? Everything alright?"

Blaine was, indeed, keeping his face down, not eager for his boyfriend to see the injuries on his face, knowing how crazy he was going to get. Sebastian had tried to clean them as best he could in the taxi cab with some paper tissues, but Blaine knew they were still pretty obvious. And he also knew Sam was going to have the fright of his life as soon as he saw them, but it was something Blaine couldn't really spare him. So instead of answering, he simply raised his face towards his partner, and flinched at the immediate gasp that left Sam's lips at the sight.

"Blaine!" Sam practically screamed as soon as he saw the blood and the bruises on Blaine's face, and he jumped from his chair and ran to him as if the world was ending, immediately cupping his cheeks to check the wounds on his face for himself. "What the hell happened to you?"

"Well…" Blaine started to explain, but then Sebastian appeared behind him and a million thoughts –none of them positive– towards the guy crossed Sam's mind in a second.

"What did you do to him, you bastard?" Sam hissed as his hands grabbed Sebastian's lapels and he pushed him into the wall.

"Sam, no!" Blaine yelled behind him, grabbing Sam's arms to separate him from his friend. "He didn't do anything to me! In fact, it's thanks to him I'm alright!"

At Blaine's words, Sam immediately released the hold he was keeping on Sebastian –who hadn't even tried to defend himself, he realized –, though his gaze on the tall boy was a clear evidence that Sam was not convinced about Sebastian's lack of implication on his boyfriend's injuries.

"I would never hurt him, Sam" Sebastian tried to reason with him, and Sam sighed in surrender as he turned to his boyfriend and put his arms around him to lead him towards the sofa, his protective urges already taking possession of him.

"It wouldn't be the first time" Sam reminded him over his shoulder, and Sebastian almost blushed with shame.

"It isn't like that anymore, you have to believe me" Sebastian pleaded as he followed the couple towards the living room area.

"Sit down and rest, it looks like you took an awful blow" Sam suggested to Blaine in a soft voice, as he tenderly helped him to sit. "Are you dizzy? Do we need to go see a doctor?"

"No, Sam, it's not that bad" Blaine tried to reassure his boyfriend, as he let Sam inspect his face more closely.

"He was a bit dizzy before" Sebastian added, wanting for Sam to know the full extent of his injuries, as he was going to be the one taking care of him.

"Well, thanks a lot, Seb" Blaine answered sarcastically, as he was trying not to make Sam worry any more than necessary. "It was only for a second"

"Let's just go to the hospital" Sam suggested, already starting to stand up again, but Blaine stopped him with a gentle, yet firm, hand to his forearm.

"Sam, I'm okay. Really" Blaine tried to convince his partner, both to stop him from forcing him into the hospital and to put his troubled mind at ease, because if there was something Blaine hated, it was to make Sam worry. "It only hurts a little"

"Let me at least get you some ice to reduce the swelling of your eye" Sam stood up, and he stood still for a second to look at the other boy in the room, still standing there without knowing what to do, and it was then when he discovered some small bruising on his face too. "I think you could do with some ice too. Why don't you sit down?"

Sebastian smiled tentatively at the blond in gratitude and complied, sitting on the armchair next to the sofa. He wasn't hurt bad, he only had received a glancing blow at the side of his face that barely left a mark, but he suspected that Sam's acknowledge of his injury was his way of apologizing for assuming he had been the one to hurt Blaine.

Sam returned to the living room in record time and handed Sebastian some ice wrapped in a napkin while he sat on the sofa next to his boyfriend to take care of him. He started carefully cleaning his split lip with a cloth, to which Blaine groaned before he was even able to stop himself.

"I'm sorry, love" Sam immediately apologized for causing his loved one more pain, even if it was while trying to make it better. "So what happened?"

"Those guys jumped me on an alley. If Sebastian hadn't scared them away…" Blaine explained, while trying not to move his lips too much because of the pain it caused, as Sam's hand moved to take care of the wound on his forehead.

"Were they trying to mug you?" Sam asked, wanting to get the whole picture even if what he really wanted was to scream away the rage he was feeling at the moment and which he was trying, not so successfully, to control.

"No, they didn't take anything" Blaine answered as Sam finally left the cloth he had been using against his injuries and picked up the ice pack. Then he put his arm around Blaine's shoulders and brought him to his chest so he could rest against him, as his other hand held the ice to the side of his face, eliciting a wince from him at the contact.

"What did they want, then?"

"What do you think?" Blaine retorted kind of bitterly, starting to shiver because of the combination of the coldness of the ice against his skin and the reminder of the fear he had experienced only a while ago, now that the adrenaline had left his system. "It was a hate crime"

"What? Are you serious?" Sam asked, his voice breaking a little at the end at the unfairness of a world that would treat his boyfriend in less than a friendly way.

"Yeah, I was talking on the phone with my brother, we were joking, maybe I was talking too loud, I don't know. I only know I said something about you being the best boyfriend or something, so I guessed they heard me and when they knew I was gay, they jumped me. I didn't even notice them until they took my phone from me" Blaine explained, trying not to show how shaken he felt for Sam's sake, when the only thing he wanted was to cry in his arms until he fell asleep and that horrible day ended.

But somehow Sam noticed how Blaine needed the comfort, and held him possessively to him until he was practically on his lap. Blaine felt a bit guilty about their demonstration of affection in front of Sebastian, especially considering his friend's feelings for him, but he could tell Sam needed the physical closeness as much as he did, so he let himself be enveloped by Sam's warmth and rested his head against his chest, while his boyfriend idly caressed the curls on the back of his head.

"Could we maybe lower the lights?" Blaine almost pleaded while closing his eyes, as the headache caused by the impact of his forehead against the wall seemed to be getting more intense by the minute.

"Do you have a headache?" Sam asked, unconsciously running his fingers across Blaine's temple to help.

"An awful one" Blaine confessed, and he heard a rustling of clothes as Sebastian stood up to grant him his wish.

"I'll get it" he offered, and he quickly switched on the general light of the room so only a small lamp behind Blaine's back remained on.

"Well, if you won't let me take you to the hospital, the least you can do is take something for the obviously horrible headache you're sporting" Sam suggested, desperate to help his boyfriend feel less miserable, even if he could only help him in the physical aspect. "You should take one of those painkillers we still have left from your accident last year"

"No, they make me so sleepy…" Blaine tried to protest, but Sam was having none of it.

"Well, then sleep! I don't see a downside to it!" Sam exclaimed, glad that the medicine would also help Blaine sleep, as he doubted he would get any of it that night after such an ordeal without some help.

"Ok, but I'm only doing it for you" Blaine relented, in too much pain to put too much of a fight. And if those painkillers could do anything for his terrible headache… he could give a try, couldn't he?

"Thank you. I'll get you one pill, then" Sam offered, as he let go of his boyfriend to go to the bathroom and get it.

Blaine dared to open his eyes for a second and looked at Sebastian, who was slumped on the armchair, apparently lost in thought as he held the ice against his cheek.

"Oh my God, Sebastian, you were hurt too?" Blaine asked, as it was the first time he noticed his friend being any less than alright. "How did I not notice before? What a lousy friend I am"

"What? Blaine, don't be silly, you didn't notice because I hardly got hurt at all! Look" he offered, taking the ice from his face so Blaine could take a look. "I bet I don't even have a mark"

"I'm sorry you got hurt while helping me"

"Well, I'm not" Sebastian answered seriously. "God knows how that would have ended if I hadn't happened to be there at that moment…"

"Thank you, Sebastian. I'll never forget what you did for me" Blaine answered honestly.

"I know you would have done the same for me, Blaine. Please, don't worry about it"

"What were you doing there, by the way?"

"I was going toward the theatre so I would meet you halfway. Since you were going to be late, I didn't feel like just sitting there"

"Thank God you did" Sam said in a shaky voice as he returned to the living room with a pill and a glass of water for his boyfriend. "Here"

"Thanks" Blaine answered as he obeyed and took the medicine.

Sam sat again and engulfed his boyfriend in his arms in a fierce grip that said a lot about how scared he was feeling. He knew he was being irrational: Blaine was alright, more or less, and he was safe at home. But to think something like that could happen in such a random way… Blaine was just a boy leaving his work place to have a coffee with a friend while talking to his brother on the phone… How could that lead to be brutally assaulted? If Sebastian hadn't decided to look for him…

"You alright?" Blaine asked worriedly when he noticed a shiver running through his boyfriend's body, who had remained in silence since coming back to the room.

"My blood is boiling right now, I'm sorry" Sam confessed, gently kissing Blaine's forehead in apology for his negative emotions. "If I could get my hands on those poor excuses of human beings right now…"

"Don't think about it" Blaine tried to reassure him, gently caressing Sam's arm up and down in a comforting pattern. "I was just in the wrong place at the wrong time"

"So what, now you have to be watching your back at all times? It was not even late! How many more times are you going to get hurt just because of who you are? It's not fair!"

"Wait, has this happened before?" Sebastian asked, utterly horrified.

"You bet it did" Sam answered in complete bitterness, and Blaine kissed his cheek, trying to placate his fury.

"Not here in New York, but when I was fifteen" Blaine confessed, even if talking about that horrible experience was the last thing he wanted. "I guess I never told you about it in high school, didn't I? I got bullied in a Sadie Hawkins dance"

"He was not "just bullied", they gave him a terrible beating that put him in the hospital for weeks" Sam explained for him, knowing how difficult an issue it still was for his adored boyfriend.

"What?" Sebastian couldn't believe how much he didn't know about his friend's life prior to meeting him, and how much he had had to suffer for someone so young.

"Yeah, that's why I transferred to Dalton. As you know, they had a zero tolerance policy in regards to bullying that my parents found very interesting so they wouldn't have to deal with that kind of shame again" Blaine explained, now he being the one sounding too bitter, and Sam squeezed him more strongly to his chest for comfort.

"I really didn't know you back in high school, did I?"

"Well, it's not something I like to talk about. I never really talked about the details of that night to anyone, not even Kurt, until Sam" he explained with an adoring smile towards his boyfriend that was immediately reciprocated. "It… still hurts, you know?"

"I can only imagine" Sebastian answered, shaking his head with sorrow. "And now you had to go through that again"

"It was not that bad, this time" Blaine contradicted him, trying to play down the importance of it in spite of how much it had shaken him.

"We should go to the police, though. Those bastards need to be reported" Sebastian suggested, but Blaine's expression immediately told him he was interested.

"What for? It's not like they're going to do anything about it, right?" Blaine asked while shrugging his shoulders in resignation.

"You never know"

"Yes, I do. I don't know who they are or where to find them. Do you think they're going to open an investigation for this?"

"Well, it's their job, right? They have to do something about it" Sebastian insisted.

"Do you know what they did when those guys from school beat me up? Nothing" Blaine explained with the saddest smile Sebastian had ever seen. "They had their names, they had witnesses that saw them running from the place where I was attacked, they found the baseball bat they used to hit me in one of their cars… And those guys didn't even get expelled from school. And you think a bruised eye given by some strangers is going to make them move a finger now?"

"Ok, let's forget about that now" Sam intervened when he noticed Blaine's shivering intensifying at the memories. He would like to report those guys too –hey, he might even try to convince Sebastian to act as a witness as he reported them himself, behind Blaine's back if it was necessary–, but the last thing Blaine needed right then was to get all worked out. The beating he got when he was only fifteen was still a very painful memory for him, as it was everything that had come after that: no consequences for his aggressors, him having to change schools, feeling completely alone while he recovered from his injuries until Cooper arrived to his side… And after the events of less than an hour before, Sam only wanted Blaine to relax and rest, and to put all that behind him, if that was even possible. "Why don't you try to sleep now? I see your eyelids getting heavy already"

"I don't want… Oh my God!" Blaine suddenly exclaimed, interrupting his own words.

"What is it?" Sam asked, instantly alert. "Is it hurting worse?"

"No, Cooper!" Blaine answered cryptically, and for a second Sam thought the blow on his head was making Blaine mix him up with his older brother and was about to force him to go to the hospital even if he had to take him in his arms himself, when Blaine clarified things. "I was talking to Cooper on the phone when those assholes took it from me. If he heard some of it, he must be worried sick!"

"I don't think he did" Sam tried to reassure him, as he took his own phone from the coffee table in front of him. "If he had, he would have tried calling me to see if… Oh okay, he did like a thousand times" Sam confessed embarrassedly when he looked at all the missed calls reflected on his phone's screen. "Apparently it was on vibration"

"I have to call him, he must be going crazy" Blaine said, even as his eyelids were starting to flutter, already under the influence of the painkillers.

"You leave that to me and stop fighting it already, you can hardly keep your eyes open" Sam suggested.

"I told you those things made me sleepy…" Blaine protested, his voice already slurred with sleep.

"I know, so take advantage of it and go to bed" Sam insisted, letting go of him so he could move, but Blaine responded snuggling even closer to his chest.

"But I want to stay here with you" Blaine pleaded and, even if Sam was about to scold him because of how much he sounded like an spoilt kid, he quickly realized that Blaine was more shaken than he wanted him to believe and didn't feel like being alone at the moment, even if it was to sleep. And frankly, Sam could do with having him in his arms for a little longer too, just to be sure he was safe and sound.

"Ok, stay here, but sleep!" Sam mockingly admonished him as he rearranged their positions so Blaine was resting more comfortably against his chest. "I promise I'll keep holding you even when you fall asleep"

"Ok" was the only thing Blaine said as he kissed Sam's cheek and finally closed his eyes and hid his face in the crook of Sam's neck, sighing gratefully in the security of Sam's arms. It was not much later that his breathing evened out, and the other two realized he was already asleep.

"Poor thing, those painkillers leave him dead to the world" Sam explained with a chuckle as he fondly caressed the curls on the side of Blaine's head.

"Well, he deserves a rest from this world, doesn't he?" Sebastian answered, also quite upset about what had happened to his best friend.

"Yeah, he surely does" Sam answered with a sigh, the smile immediately erasing from his lips. "Excuse me for a second, I really need to call his brother, he must be going crazy" Sam explained as he searched for Cooper's number on his phone and immediately brought it to his ear. Poor Cooper, he must have been so worried he picked it up instantly. "Coop? Hi, dude… …Yeah, calm down, he's… …Coop, take it easy, I know what… …Cooper, will you let me talk for a second?! Blaine is here with me, don't worry, he's just asleep… …Well, he could be better, but I guess he's good enough… …Yeah, he was assaulted in the street but luckily he got help before any real damage was made. That's why he can't talk at the minute, I gave him a painkiller and he's already unconscious, you know how much those things affect him… …Yeah, he got a couple of punches and he hit his head on the wall so he's got quite a headache but he'll be alright… …No, I'm not trying to make light of the situation, you know I'd be going crazy myself if it was more serious… …You know what? He can give you all the details tomorrow, when he's feeling better and you'll see for yourself he's alright…"

Sebastian looked at Sam as he talked to his brother-in-law, trying to keep him calm, and had to chuckle at the blond's patience. So yeah, apparently Cooper was as protective and insistent as Blaine had always described him. But he guessed everything that had happened was even more difficult to accept for Cooper, when he was not there to see for himself that Blaine was mostly okay. And hey, he had been talking to Blaine on the phone when everything started, so his worry was more than justified, he guessed.

"It was a hate crime, Cooper" Sebastian heard Sam say with a sigh when he got out of his reverie. "Again. We were lucky Sebastian arrived and was able to stop them before they could do some real damage… …I know, I'm so grateful to him… …Yeah, he's here, in fact, do you want to talk to him?" Sam asked, and he immediately handed his phone to a startled Sebastian. "He wants to talk to you"

"Hi, I'm Sebastian" he responded shyly as he put the phone to his ear. "No, please, you don't have to thank me, he is my friend… …Alright then, you're welcome… …Don't apologize for talking shit about me, please, I know the kind of things I did in the past… …Yeah, totally, I would love to meet you too, of course. You're Blaine's brother, after all… …Really, you need to stop it, you're going to make me blush" Sebastian looked at Sam, who was chuckling by now at the interaction of those two very different people. "Yeah, I'll tell him to be more careful, don't worry… …Stop it now, please… Ok, bye" he finally was able to hang up. "Man, he is a really grateful guy"

"He loves Blaine very much" Sam explained, still chuckling. "And given their age difference, and the fact Blaine can't count on his parents, sometimes Cooper would pass more like a father to him than as a brother. That is, if he wasn't such a wacky guy"

"He seems quite a character, I'll give you that" Sebastian answered with a smile as he left the phone on the coffee table. "But Blaine seems to love him very much too"

"He does. Cooper is the only one who has always been there for him" Sam explained, fondly thinking of his brother-in-law and his protective urges towards Blaine, grateful that at least Blaine had always been able to count on him. Even after that damned Sadie Hawkins dance…

"Are you alright?" Sebastian asked at Sam's sudden silence.

"I will be" Sam promised with a nod of his head.

"I can only imagine how shaken you must be feeling right now"

"It's just… the thought of something happening to him…" Sam explained with a sigh, looking down at the boy in his arms as if he could break at any moment.

"I know" Sebastian answered, understanding the feeling too well. "But nothing happened… at least anything too serious"

"This time" Sam reminded him very seriously.

"It doesn't have to happen again"

"We can't be sure it won't, either" Sam replied, just when Blaine moved to snuggle more closely under his chin, as if somehow he sensed they were talking about him, or how upset Sam was feeling at the moment and wanted to be closer to him, to which Sam smiled fondly at him. "Can you imagine someone wanting to hurt him?"

"I really don't" Sebastian confirmed, with another fond smile towards the entangled couple.

"Hey, I'm sorry I jumped into conclusions like that…" Sam apologized, suddenly remembering about his attitude earlier. "And I'm even sorrier I attacked you"

"Don't worry, I understand, all things considered" Sebastian was quick to forgive. "I know I'm no angel"

"Even then, I was unfair to you. If it hadn't been for you…"

"Let's just be thankful nothing too serious happened"

"Even if you didn't help Blaine for me, I feel like I'm in debt with you"

"No, of course you aren't" Sebastian immediately refused the appraisal.

"Well, you very possibly saved Blaine from a terrible beating tonight or… who knows what" Sam answered, as a shiver ran all through his body at what could have happened and he squeezed Blaine's body more strongly to him. "You could have gotten seriously hurt yourself"

"Well, he is my friend, if there was a chance to help him I had to take it" Sebastian answered in all honesty. "You don't owe me anything"

"I still feel I need to apologize. I've not been fair to you, and now you've proven me wrong by protecting what I love the most in the world"

"I'm glad I could do it. I don't want anything happening to him either"

"And there I was, thinking your feelings were going to cause us trouble" Sam joked.

"So… I guess Blaine told you about my feelings for him, then" Sebastian tentatively said, not sure Sam was ready for that conversation… nor himself.

"Yeah" Sam answered, not finding the need to lie after everything that had happened that evening.

"Then you also know I'm not going to act on them" Sebastian added, wanting Sam to understand he didn't want to interfere between the two of them.

"That's what he told me, yeah" Sam answered, nodding his head. "And he trusts you"

"I wish you could, too"

"I'm trying, Sebastian. I really am. It's not like I can blame you for loving him, right? I completely understand" Sam said as he looked down at the face on his chest and smiled goofily at it again, glad of the change of topic and the lighter atmosphere. "And I've been in your place"

"Have you?" Sebastian asked in surprise. Clearly Blaine hadn't told him the whole story.

"Well, I started falling for him when he and Kurt were pretty much an issue still… So yeah, I know how you feel"

"It's not the same, though, right?"

"What do you mean?" Sam asked, confused.

"Well, Kurt and Blaine were never meant to be, surely you could see that" Sebastian explained.

"Well, that was my opinion at the moment, yeah" Sam agreed with a chuckle.

"So you knew that you had a chance. That's the difference: I know I don't have it" Sebastian answered sadly.

"You really think so?" Sam asked, trying –and failing– not to sound too proud.

"Come on, Sam, you'd have to be blind to not see how perfect this thing you both have is" Sebastian explained, and Sam felt bad for a second –and only for a second, all things considered– that Sebastian would never get what he wanted. "I know I'll never stand a chance, and neither will anyone else, either with him or with you"

"You don't know how good it feels to hear you, of all people, saying that. And after what you did today… But I'm sure you understand my doubts, don't you? I don't want Blaine to get hurt, that's all"

"I get it, Sam. I really do. If Blaine was my boyfriend… well, I guess I wouldn't want people like me around him either"

"I don't want people around him like the person you used to be, you're right… But maybe we can make it work with this new you" Sam offered, and was glad at the smile he elicited on Blaine's friend. "He really appreciates your friendship and… I'd love to get to know you better too"

"Really?" Sebastian asked, full of hope.

"Yes. Blaine is not giving up on you and neither am I. Although there is something I'll never be able to forgive you" Sam said, suddenly going very serious.

"What?" Sebastian asked, apprehensively, convinced that the slushee incident was going to make an apparition again.

"That you helped him when he proposed to Kurt in high school" Sam replied and, after a moment, he smiled mischievously until Sebastian laughed wholeheartedly.

"So did you!" Sebastian protested between giggles.

"Touché" Sam admitted, joining Sebastian in his laughing. "But you tried to lure him back to Dalton, and that sucks"

"Yet you managed to keep him at McKinley with you"

"It was where he really belonged"

"No, don't retract yourself from his decision" Sebastian contradicted him all joking aside. "Kurt was not there anymore, and none of the others were real friends for him at the moment. He stayed for you"

"He just needed someone who made him see how important and great he was" Sam explained, thinking about all those times along the years when Blaine had felt as if he didn't matter thanks to the people around him taking him for granted. "Just like Kurt stopped doing as soon as he moved to New York. I don't know how Kurt was so stupid as to let this… angel go. Twice. I bet he will regret it for the rest of his life"

"I really hope so" Sebastian answered with a nod. "I never liked Kurt at all, to be honest"

"I didn't like him that much at the end either, you know" Sam confessed with an embarrassed chuckle.

"You're so much better for Blaine than he ever was"

"I know, right?" Sam couldn't help to ask, and they both chuckled knowingly.

"So… do they keep in contact?" Sebastian asked curiously.

"Not really. We had a double date once with him and his boyfriend, and they've talked on skype a couple of times, but nothing else. Even if he won't admit it, Kurt hurt him a lot, before and after they broke up, and even if he's totally forgiven him, it's still hard for him, you know? And surely I'm not going to insist, I'm not as forgiving as Blaine is"

"Yeah, I've experienced that first-hand" Sebastian joked.

"Hey, I'm trying!" Sam mockingly protested, a little too loudly.

"Will you two stop shouting? I'm trying to sleep here" Blaine suddenly said, more asleep than awake as he snuggled closer to Sam's chest with the peaceful expression of a little child, and the other two had to fight hard not to laugh at the oblivious boy.

"I should get going, so sleeping beauty here can have his rest" Sebastian announced as he stood up from his seat.

"I heard that" Blaine mumbled, making Sebastian laugh fondly at him.

"But you should totally come for supper tomorrow" Sam offered, shyly. "Just… so we can start knowing each other better"

"I'd like that" Sebastian answered, before he lifted his hands in front of him as a gesture to stop Sam from moving. "Please, don't get up, I don't want you to disturb him. I can find my own way to the door"

"Alright" Sam answered, appreciating his kindness. "So we'll see you tomorrow around seven, okay?"

"Of course" Sebastian agreed as he put on his jacket.

"And… thank you" Sam said once again, completely honest.

"It was my pleasure" Sebastian answered and, with a last look at the wounded boy in Sam's arms, he found his way to the door and left.

"Did you just invite Sebastian for dinner or I took a harder blow to my head than I originally thought?" Blaine asked, only half joking because he was not sure he had not dreamt it.

"Yeah, apparently I did" Sam answered with a chuckle, almost as surprised himself. "Let's take advantage you're partially awake to get you to bed"

"But you'll stay with me, right?" Blaine asked, not caring if he sounded like he was begging. The last thing he wanted right now was to be alone, even if he was sure he was going to sleep like a log because of the painkillers. "You can watch a movie on the laptop or something, it's not going to bother me"

"Of course I'll stay with you" Sam promised, depositing a long kiss to Blaine's forehead. "Not even a nuclear bomb would keep me apart from you tonight. Come on, I'll help you"

"I thought you were going to carry me" Blaine joked, though he was not sure his shaky legs would be able to hold his weight, let alone get him to their room.

"Oh, so the prince wants to be carried" Sam sarcastically replied, but he put one arm around Blaine's torso and another one under his legs with the intention to do it.

"I was only kidding, you don't have to… oh, okay" Blaine tried to protest until he felt himself lifted in the air by his boyfriend's brawny arms. "Man, you're strong"

"No, you're just tiny" Sam joked as he effortlessly carried his boyfriend bridal-style towards the bedroom, taking comfort from the weight of Blaine's head on his shoulder and the way his arms closed lovingly around Sam's neck.


	8. Chapter 8

_As always..._

_**Me-me157:** Yeah, Sebastian really saved the day! I knew he would turn out to be useful ;) Of course Sam has to make an effort now, after all Sebastian saved the love of his life. So yeah, Blambastian (friendship, of course) is here! Thank you so much, sweetie!_

**_StyxxandBethany: _**_wow, thanks! You're right, Sebastian should do something about it (yes, he's a lawyer, though unemployed yet), though I'm afraid Blaine is right and not much can be done about it. I know, poor Cooper, but I think Blaine can be forgiven about forgetting to call him immediately, after what he had just gone through. Thank you so much!_

**_Jov: _**_yeah, I love Blaine too much for him not to be okay (although I put him through a lot, now that i think about it, and wait for what's about to come). Don't worry about Sebastian, he's fine now with Sam and Blaine being together. Thank you!_

**_Rraiderva:_**_ hahahaha, yeah, I've been dying for Sam to carry Blaine around since the beginning of the first story ;) Well, Blaine was only dizzy for a second but yeah, you're probably right (I think I already showed how little medical knowledge I have on the first story, right? Just humor me! ;) ) Thank you so much!_

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><p><em><strong>AN:** Okay, sorry it took me so long to post! But i've been losing my time with doing some Blam manips ;) Plus this chapter is practically twice as long as my chapter usually are, so you'll have to forgive me. Enjoy!_

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><p><strong>CHAPTER 8<strong>

Sam woke up with a start. He didn't know what had woken him, and a quick look towards the window on the bedroom told him it was still dark night outside. With a tired sigh, he turned on his side and snuggled up closer to his partner, knowing he would be asleep again in a second.

But then he heard a pitiful sound coming from his boyfriend's lips and realized that was what had woken him up in the first place. It almost sounded like he was… whimpering?

"B?" Sam asked, still half asleep, as his boyfriend made another unfamiliar sound. Sam's hand blindly searched for Blaine's body, and it was when it made contact with his chest and Sam felt he was violently shaking and thrashing that Sam abruptly awoke fully and understood Blaine was having a brutal nightmare. "Blaine, wake up, sweetie"

When Blaine gave no sign that he was waking up, and his tossing and turning continued, Sam sat up in the bed and lit the little lamp on his night stand. He was appalled to see the state his boyfriend was in: his hair plastered to his head because of how drenched with cold sweat he was, a mask of terror covering his face, his eyelids fluttering as his eyes moved frantically under them. And Sam realized he was not just whimpering, he was repeatedly whispering _no_, as his hands moved every now and then, as if trying to fight an imaginary foe.

Wanting to put an end to it as soon as possible, Sam brought his hands to Blaine's forearms to stop his movements and gently shook him in hopes of getting him out of the nightmare he was trapped in.

"B, you need to wake up now" Sam urged him, and his attempts turned stronger as Blaine refused to open his eyes. "Come on, babe, wake up!" Sam practically yelled.

With a big intake of air Blaine finally opened his eyes, and there was so much confusion and fear in them that Sam's heart broke for a second.

"B, are you with me?" he tenderly asked, trying to get his attention with a tender caress along his arm.

Blaine didn't answer as he tried to regain his breath, but one look at the worried face of his boyfriend was enough to connect him with reality and make him jump from his lying position and into his arms, finding the solace he very much needed after such a nightmare.

"It's alright, love, it's alright. I'm here" Sam reassured him as he embraced Blaine strongly to his chest, devotedly flattening the curls on the back of Blaine's head and depositing tiny and comforting kisses on the side of his neck. Blaine's heart was racing like crazy, and for a moment Sam worried he was going to have a heart attack.

"That was horrible" Blaine confessed after a minute, his whispering voice muffled against the skin on Sam's neck.

"That must have been quite a nightmare" Sam guessed, judging by the strength which with Blaine was clinging to him. "You were shaking and talking"

"I dreamt about that damned Sadie Hawkins dance… I thought I didn't remember much about it, but it was so vivid and real on my dream…" Blaine explained, his voice still shaky as he let himself be comforted by Sam's strong arms around him.

"It's over now, love, I've got you" Sam reassured him with a last squeeze before breaking the embrace to look at Blaine's face. There was still some fear in his eyes, but at least they weren't filled with the panic from a moment before. "You're safe now"

"I know" Blaine answered with a sigh. "It's just… I hadn't had that dream for years…"

"I guess the events from today brought it back" Sam answered, reasonably. "Do you want to talk about it? About today, I mean" Sam hadn't wanted to ask for all the details in front of Sebastian, knowing how difficult it was for his boyfriend to open his heart to others, but now they were alone, he felt he needed to ask.

"I was so afraid" Blaine confessed in a whisper as an involuntary shiver ran through his body at the memory, trusting his boyfriend not to judge him as a weak person.

"Anyone would have been in your place, babe" Sam immediately reassured him. "I know I'd been terrified. Those were some hard blows you took"

"But the pain isn't even the worst. It's the waiting, the… not knowing what they are planning to do with you, or how will it end" Blaine explained, so absorbed in his memory that he looked almost as if he was talking to himself, so Sam put a hand on his thigh to act as an anchor to reality as Blaine continued talking. "I don't know if they really meant it but… they were talking about killing me. They said gays should be exterminated and that they were going to start with me"

"Oh love" Sam exclaimed, as he was so horrified that any more words failed to leave his mouth, his eyes filling with tears that he tried to hold. Not sure who needed some physical closeness the most, he threw an arm around his boyfriend's shoulder and brought him to his chest again to hold him firmly there and kiss the top of his head. But as soon as Blaine was wrapped in his arms, Sam couldn't help it anymore and a small sob escaped through his lips.

"Sam" Blaine immediately understood –didn't he always?– and embraced him just as strongly as Sam's chest shook with sobs that he was unsuccessfully trying to hold. "It's alright, I'm okay. Nothing happened"

That's what Blaine had been trying to avoid: he knew how big Sam's heart was, and how protective he was of him, and he knew that as soon as he knew the full extent of what had transpired the day before, Sam would be devastated. That's why he had tried delaying talking about it but, at the same time, he knew Sam needed and deserved to know everything. So the only thing Blaine could do was to be there for him and try to make it better.

"Of course something happened, Blaine" Sam contradicted him, his voice betraying the turmoil inside of him. "They threatened to kill you!"

"They probably just wanted to scare me and have a good time" Blaine tried to reason with him, momentarily putting all his fear aside to take care of Sam's. "At least they didn't have any weapons with them this time, you know? No bats, or anything else"

"Blaine, I can see what you're doing, but please, stop. I can handle it, okay?" Sam asked him when he broke the embrace, sighing deeply to calm himself down as he removed the fallen tears from his cheeks to make a point.

"I… I wish you didn't have to go through all of this" Blaine lamented, drying with his thumb a remaining teardrop on the soft skin of his boyfriend's cheek.

"Don't try to protect me from anything, please, I'm shaken but I can take it. It was just a little breakdown, but let me be there for you, you're the one who was put in that situation, not me"

"Oh, but you were too, honey" Blaine acknowledged Sam's pain, fondly caressing his cheek with a sad smile. "I can tell you're so scared…"

"It's just… It frightens me so much to see that things like that can happen at any time… So we can't be safe? Ever?"

"No, don't let fear rule our lives. Please" Blaine begged, because he had let that happen when he was fifteen and he had almost reached a point of no return. "I was so stupid, you know? It was already dark, I was alone and I was dim enough to let my guard down on an almost deserted street while talking on the phone. And if that wasn't enough, I was bragging about my wonderful boyfriend, not exactly whispering about it. I should have been more careful"

"But it's not fair that we have to be constantly watching our backs"

"No, it isn't, but it's safe. I promise I'll never be this careless again. Stop worrying, please"

"I can't stop worrying about you, babe" Sam confessed, gently running his hand across Blaine's knee. "And you having that nightmare only shows me how upset you really are, even if you're trying to stay strong for my sake"

"I'm not trying to…" Blaine tried to deny, but Sam knew him too well.

"Yes, you are. But see, I'm okay now. Let's focus on you. Why didn't you tell me before? About… what those guys said?"

"I didn't want you to get angry or scared or too shaken. It's bad enough I had to go through that, I didn't want you to also feel that way" Blaine explained, because who was he to cause Sam more pain when all he had ever done was to support him and take care of him?

"Blaine, what happens to you happens to me too, whether you like it or not" Sam said very seriously, his hands moving to cup Blaine's cheeks to force him to look at him, wanting to make a very important point. "And not talking about it is not going to make me worry less about you. All the contrary, at least this way I know what's going on in your head"

"Ok" Blaine answered with his first smile, even if small, after waking up from his horrible nightmare, and he took Sam's hand in his in gratitude.

"Don't get angry, but… we need to report them to the police" Sam tentatively suggested, knowing it was a touchy issue with his boyfriend, after what happened at his Sadie Hawkins dance.

"What for?" Blaine retorted bitterly, though Sam knew that feeling was not directed at him. "It's not like it's going to be of any use"

"Well, you never know. At least it will make me feel better"

"But Sam…" Blaine tried to protest.

"Please, Blaine. For me" Sam knew he was playing dirty because Blaine wouldn't be able to deny him that way, but he needed to do it.

"That's cheating" Blaine protested with a pout and squeezed Sam's hand to let him know he was going to do it.

"Your knuckles are red and raw" Sam observed, noticing it for the first time when he looked at their joined hands.

"I tried to defend myself" Blaine explained with a shrug of his shoulders.

"You're the bravest person there is, you know?" Sam said in admiration.

"Then why do I feel so afraid right now?" Blaine asked in a small voice and he snuggled to Sam's chest as soon as the latter threw an arm around his shoulders.

"Honey, you were just attacked!" Sam said with a humorless laugh; if anyone had the right to feel fear, that was Blaine at the moment. "You wouldn't be human if you weren't afraid!"

"But I don't even want to think about going to rehearsals tomorrow and walking those same streets at the end of the day" Blaine confessed because, as childish as it seemed –those guys were not going to be there again–, he was filled with an irrational fear. "It's killing me just to think about it"

"I'll come and pick you up from the theatre tomorrow, how does that sound?" Sam offered, knowing it would do both of them a lot of good and would put their minds at ease.

"No, Sam, it makes me feel weak and childish that you have to go all the way there so I don't have to come home on my own" Blaine contradicted him, but in his heart he was hoping against hope that Sam would insist.

"Oh, but I was thinking about going for a date" Sam answered with a genuine smile this time, trying to make his boyfriend feel better without making too much of a fuss about it. "I can pick you up and then we can go and have dinner somewhere nice. It's been a while since the last time"

"How do you manage to get more and more perfect every day?" Blaine asked, looking so adoringly at him that Sam's heart fluttered just because of how loved he felt.

"Oh, I only do it because I know I'll get my reward at the end of the date" he joked even as he kissed the top of Blaine's head.

"Unfortunately, we can't have a date tomorrow"

"Why not?"

"You invited Sebastian for dinner, remember?" Blaine reminded him with a smile.

"Shit! I knew I was going to regret it" Sam exclaimed with a groan, eliciting a heartfelt laugh from Blaine that sounded like celestial music for Sam. "It doesn't have to be a formal dinner though, right? I'll come pick you up as I promised and we can buy some takeaway on our way home. Sebastian won't mind that we didn't cook, will he?"

"No, of course not. I'm sure he's so glad you of all people invited him for dinner than the food will be the last thing on his mind. But you don't have to come all the way to the theatre, I'll…"

"I'm not even listening" Sam interrupted him and shut him up with a finger to Blaine's lips. "You were hurt and I'm going to spoil you for at least a couple of days, it's a law or something. And now, young man, time to go back to sleep or you will feel like crap in the morning"

"I don't want to go back to sleep" Blaine pouted, trying to make it look as if he was joking, but Sam could see underneath his pretence.

"But you need it" Sam insisted, lying down on his back and bringing Blaine down with him so he could nestle up to his broad chest. "You still have to sleep the painkillers away. I can see how shitty you're feeling right now"

"But I'm… scared" Blaine confessed in a whisper.

"I'll hold you, okay? I'll make sure to not let go of you for the rest of the night so I can keep your nightmares at bay" Sam promised, and Blaine knew he would do it even if he had to guard his sleep all night. "How does that sound?"

"It sounds good. But I'm all sweaty and gross" Blaine complained, feeling the top of his pajamas sticking to his torso because of the sweat.

"If the day comes I find you gross in any way, consider I've gone crazy" Sam joked to lighten the mood, though there was a lot of truth in his words. "And I've never had a problem with you being sweaty in bed, if you know what I mean"

"Yes, you're so subtle" Blaine joked back, glad of the lighter atmosphere. "Alright, but please, make sure you get some sleep too"

"Oh, I will, you know I've never had a problem with sleep" Sam quickly dismissed his worries.

"You've never had a problem with losing sleep to take care of me either, so…" Blaine pointed out, and Sam smiled at how well Blaine could read his intentions.

"Just sleep already, leave the worrying for me for once" Sam answered with a chuckle, squeezing Blaine's body more strongly to his chest.

"For once?" Blaine asked sarcastically, because Sam was such a mother hen…

"Will you just shut up?" Sam mockingly admonished him, eliciting another giggle from his boyfriend.

"I love you" Blaine answered gratefully, comfortingly hiding his face in the crook of Sam's neck, the place in the world where he felt the most secure and content.

"Great, now you're making me feel bad about scolding you" Blaine laughed again at his boyfriend's reply as Sam switched off the lamp and secured his embrace around his lover. "I love you too, babe"

* * *

><p>Blaine smiled even before opening his eyes the morning after, having awoken to the smell of coffee and the feel of Sam's soft lips brushing his forehead. For a moment he decided to forget about everything that wasn't his dreamy boyfriend and enjoy the fact that said boyfriend was bringing him breakfast to bed. So he wasn't kidding when he said he was going to spoil him last night, Blaine thought with a smile, that he could see was being reciprocated as soon as he opened his eyes.<p>

"Morning" Blaine greeted his boyfriend, who was sitting on the edge of the bed with a full tray on his lap and a wide smile on his face.

"Morning, love" Sam answered as he waited for Blaine to sit up and rest against the headboard so he could take the tray. "I thought you might be hungry. You didn't have any supper last night, after all"

"You aren't real, are you?" Blaine answered as he took the tray and rested on his lap, trying to balance it when Sam heavily moved to sit next to him.

"Shit, you finally discovered me" Sam joked as he grabbed a toast and took a big bite.

"Did you sleep?" Blaine asked, straight to the point. "Or you spent the whole night looking after me?"

"Of course I slept, you silly" Sam answered easily.

"Sam…"

"B, the fact I was up before you doesn't mean I didn't sleep, you know?" Sam asked, offering the half eaten toast for Blaine to bite because yes, there were more toasts on the plate that he could grab, but didn't it feel nice for him to feed his boyfriend and to share?

"Alright, I guess I'll have to believe you" Blaine said, resting a loving kiss on Sam's shoulder.

"How are you feeling?" Sam asked as he gently outlined the bruise around Blaine's still swollen eye.

"Like shit" Blaine confessed, because he was sporting a nice headache –whether it was because of the blows from the day before or the lack of sleep, he didn't know–. "How does my face look?"

"Like shit too" Sam honestly answered. Apart from his eye, he was sporting an ugly wound on his forehead from when he hit the wall and his bottom lip was split. There was no way people wouldn't notice. "Maybe you should call them sick today. You need to rest, you didn't sleep half of what you needed. And your face…"

"No, I can't just not go" Blaine denied, shaking his head with a sigh. "You know things are not that good back at the theatre, I don't want to risk them getting angry at me, or something. Plus the marks won't matter 'cause we're still at rehearsals. I'll just have to deal with everybody asking me about it"

"You're still worried about the atmosphere at the theatre?"

"Yeah. Something's not right, I can feel it, and I know the other actors feel it too. That's why I have to go"

"Ok then, let's go" Sam said as he finished the last of his toast.

"Where?" Blaine asked in confusion.

"To the theatre. If you really have to go…"

"Yeah, but what about you?"

"What, can't I want to spend more time with my beautiful boyfriend even if it's walking him to work?" Sam explained, knowing it was the easiest way to convince his boyfriend to let him accompany him.

"You really don't have to" Blaine answered, although Sam could tell he really appreciated the offer.

"But I want to. It's not just for you, we'll both feel better with each other for a little longer today, I think" Sam replied, being totally honest. Blaine wasn't the only one in a strong need of company and comfort that day, after all.

"I love you so much" Blaine said as he left the tray on the bedside table and walked to his boyfriend to fall into his arms in gratitude.

"And so do I" Sam answered, immediately reciprocating the hug.

"Even with this face?" Blaine joked, pointing at the injuries that marred his beautiful face.

"You're just too pretty for a couple of bruises to spoil it" Sam answered, carefully kissing the corner of Blaine's mouth so as not to bother his split lip.

"Pretty?" Blaine asked, pretending to be offended at the choice of words.

"The prettiest" Sam reasserted his answer with the widest smile as he pushed Blaine in the bathroom's direction with the intention of helping him get ready for the day. The spoiling had just started, after all.

* * *

><p>Blaine was finding it hard even to move. The other actors had hugged him, wished him good luck and said their goodbyes a few minutes ago yet he was still there, in the theatre back door, trying to come to terms with the fact that his biggest dreams had been shred to pieces with just a few cold words.<p>

He had never hated being on the right so much in his whole life as he was right then: he had known there was something funny with the whole thing, but he would have never imagined it was so serious; he would have never imagined the show would be cancelled before it even begun, and his aspirations to make his debut on Broadway had vanished overnight.

The producer had talked about lack of investment, about recession and how it had affected the show business, about a lack of agreement with the theatre place… But Blaine hadn't understood any of it. He had just looked at the faces of his fellow actors, almost as disappointed and heartbroken as he felt, and knew there was no turning back.

So there he was, not knowing what to do or where to go at a time of day he should be working. He contemplated giving Sam a call to tell him about it –he could do with some comforting his boyfriend would gladly provide–, but Sam was at work and Blaine didn't want him leaving his place or, worse yet, worrying about him all day until he could come to him, as Blaine was sure would happen if he told him about the news then. Plus he didn't feel like talking on the phone on the street again after yesterday's experience, even if it was in broad daylight and with a lot more people around him. The attack was still too fresh and he was upset enough that he did have to walk those streets on his own after all. And even if he couldn't help it, he hated himself for being afraid.

Just a week ago, his life was perfect: he had the most amazing boyfriend ever, they lived happily in their little bubble and he was about to make his big debut on Broadway in one the most reputable musical shows ever. Now he didn't even have a job –just when they needed the most, after the great investment they'd done in Sam's comic book– and, even if his boyfriend was as perfect as ever, their little happy bubble had been brutally burst and Sam had been made to face the reality of all the hate around them.

Just in a couple of days the bastards that attacked Blaine on one hand, and Puck in the other, had ended Sam's illusion that they could be a normal couple, that the world would accept them as they were and they would live happily ever after. And that's what hurt him the most, because Sam was the best person he had ever know and he only deserved good things coming to him; he only deserved to be happy. And Blaine knew Sam was as shaken, if not even more, than he was at the moment. And that was something Blaine couldn't stand.

But Blaine thought he could do something about it. He knew he couldn't do anything about his aggressors; even if he reported them, they would never find them. But he surely could do something about Puck. After all, he knew where he worked by the logo on the paper bag where Sam had bought those bagels for him. And after the day he just had, he really was in the mood for some confrontation, he thought as he finally was able to move and started walking towards the café where he hoped would find his former classmate.

* * *

><p>Blaine took a long look at the café from outside the place before making his way in. It looked like a nice place, cozy and warm, and he thought that it didn't really go with Puck's style. Or the Puck he knew back in high school, of course, because according to Sam, he had changed a lot since then.<p>

He spotted him cleaning a recently emptied table close to the door and Blaine realized he hadn't changed that much physically. Sure, he was not wearing that hideous Mohawk anymore, but apart from that, he looked very much the same boy he had known. And it was now or never, Blaine thought as he found his way in with only one purpose on his mind.

"Hi, Puck" he greeted him as soon as he was standing next to the other boy.

"Blaine! Hi!" Puck answered, clearly astounded as to seeing the former warbler there.

"You seem quite surprised to see me" Blaine pointed out. "Weren't you expecting me to come all the way here after what you told Sam yesterday?"

"Well, I…" Puck tried to talk, but no words seemed to find the way out of his mouth.

"You seem to have trouble finding your voice today" Blaine continued, surprised at the hesitation and… shame? on the other boy. He had expected him to give more of a fight after all. "You didn't have any problems yesterday, right, when you tried to convince Sam that he was doing wrong?"

"That's not what I said" Puck tried to defend himself but man, wasn't Blaine scary when he was angry?

"Don't make me repeat what you said. Frankly, I never expected you to turn out like this. I know we didn't have much of a relationship back in high school, but I thought you respected me" Blaine explained, shaking his head with disgust. "But it's okay, I couldn't care less about how you feel about me. What I can't tolerate is you judging Sam like that, someone who was once your friend, just because he's fallen in love with a guy"

"I didn't want to judge him, I only said…" Puck tried again in a soft voice, but Blaine wasn't even near finished yet.

"I know what you said. And I know how you made Sam feel with your homophobia"

"I'm not an homophobic" Puck protested, and by how offended he seemed at the notion, Blaine thought for a second that maybe he had judged him too quickly. But then he remembered Sam's face from the day before as he explained to him that his former friend had made him feel as if he was a totally different person and any trace of compassion flew from his mind.

"No? You see this?" Blaine asked in a determined tone, pointing at the injuries on his face. "This is what homophobia looks like. But it's only one side of it, you know. The wounds you inflicted may not be visible like these ones, but they're still there. You only contributed to make our world a little more difficult, just as much as those guys did"

Puck was left speechless. He had always known Blaine was someone with a strong character underneath all the charm and kindness that was so characteristic of him. Hell, he knew he confronted Karofsky a couple of times in high school –and wait, didn't he almost fight Sam too once?– or accused Kurt once of cheating in front of the whole Glee club. But he hadn't expected for him to come all the way there to defend his lover's honor in such an… incisive way. He looked so angry… And what was he implying, that he had been beaten for being gay? Did that kind of things still happen? And how could he say his words hurt like punches did? He was not an homophobe, he had never hurt anyone like that… had he?

"Sam only deserves the best of this world and thanks to people like you he's had to confront reality in the hardest possible ways these last few days" Blaine continued, and Puck marveled at how protective he was of Sam –like Sam had been of him just the day before. Maybe they were made for each other, after all–. "And I can't stand seeing Sam hurting, even if you can't understand how much we love each other"

"I didn't want to hurt Sam" Puck answered, though he knew his words sounded poor and empty after all Blaine had said.

"Here" Blaine said, more calmly this time, as he wrote something in a paper napkin he picked from the nearest table and gave it to the older boy. "This is the address to our home. You've hurt him, and if you're half the man you think you are, you'll come someday and apologize to him. I can't promise he'll forgive you, but he deserves for you to try, doesn't he?"

And with no further conversation, Blaine nodded at him and turned around to leave the place, feeling that at least some justice had been done that day.

* * *

><p>Sam hurried home as much as he could once he got out of work, a feeling of dread in his heart. Only five minutes before he was supposed to leave the office, he got a cryptic message from his boyfriend only asking him not to pick him up from the theatre as he was already home. He had called him immediately, of course, wanting to know the reason why he was not at rehearsals –was he feeling worse from his headache? Did they send him home because of his injuries?–, but Blaine hadn't answered his phone. So the only thing Sam could do was to hurry home and find out what was happening for himself.<p>

"Honey?" he asked as soon as he opened the door to the apartment, and he started talking in a rush as he saw the top of Blaine's head over the couch's backrest. "I got your message stating that you were already home, but I thought we agreed I was picking you up from the theatre. Shouldn't you still be at rehearsals? Did you have to leave early 'cause you were not feeling okay?"

"No" was the only answer he received from his boyfriend, and Sam was quick to hang his jacket on the rack and make his way around the couch.

"Hey, sweetie, what's wrong?" he asked, immediately worried as he saw Blaine curled into a ball on the sofa, his face almost hidden between his knees, making him look impossibly small. "Is it a headache again? Are you okay?"

"The show was cancelled" Blaine answered in the softest voice, not even lifting his gaze from where it was lost staring into space.

"What show?" Sam asked in confusion as he sat next to his boyfriend, becoming more and more worried by the second about his stance.

"My show, Sam. _Les miserables_" Blaine explained, finally turning to look at his partner. "It's not going to happen"

"What?" Sam asked, in utter bewilderment. "How can that be?"

"Apparently the company couldn't reach an agreement with the theatre or something. It's over, Sam" Blaine explained with a voice full of misery that broke Sam's heart.

"Oh my God, B. Come here" Sam said as he put his arms around his boyfriend and brought his hand to the back of Blaine's head to hold it to his shoulder in a soothing gesture. "I can't believe this is happening. I didn't know that was even an option"

"I know, I didn't either. I knew something was happening, but I didn't expect to be left with nothing just like that"

"Oh, babe, I'm so sorry" Sam lamented, gently caressing the curls on the back of Blaine's head.

"And it happened at the worst of times, you know? We need the money, I have to find a job as soon as possible, and with this face…" Blaine started talking in a rush as he broke the embrace and angrily pointed at his bruises.

"Babe, calm down, one thing at a time" Sam pleaded, bringing his hand to Blaine's shoulder to try and appease him. "You just lost your job, let's take a minute to think about all the possible options"

"Maybe Jonah can have me back in the shop for a full-time job" Blaine continued, ignoring Sam for once. "He won't care about the bruises"

"No, Blaine, you can't go back to that now"

"What else can I do? You know auditions are not that frequent, nor easy, and the season already started, all the shows are already casted. I can't stand here just waiting for the perfect job to come, let's be realistic. We need the money"

"Fuck, this is all my fault" Sam lamented, bringing his hands to his face in a frustrated gesture.

"How is this your fault?" Blaine asked in confusion.

"We need the money because we spent what we had in my damned comic book, and now you have to go back to shitty jobs so we can pay the rent. How is that fair?"

"Ok, first: this is only temporary, until something comes up" Blaine tried to calm him down. In his need to figure out his immediate future, he had failed to see Sam would surely feel guilty about it. "Second: I don't mind roughing it for a bit, I don't feel it's in any way beneath my dignity. And third, and most important: do I have to remind you that you didn't want to do it, and I practically forced you? So if it's anyone's fault, that would be me. And I don't regret it. At all" It was very important for Blaine to make Sam understand that, so he cupped Sam's neck with both hands to make him look at him.

"It's still not fair. You finished your degree, you are immensely talented, you should make a living out of it instead of working in a shop" Sam lamented. What was wrong with the world, why did everything happen to his kindhearted boyfriend?

"And I will! This is just a minor setback!"

"Haven't you been through enough in your life? Won't you ever get lucky?"

"You mean luckier than having you as my life partner?" Blaine said with a little smile, because yes, everything seemed to be going the wrong way, but Sam was his constant, his source of strength, and he knew that would never fail.

"Sweetie, stop it" Sam asked him, grabbing the hands still present on his neck to hold them in his. "None of this is fair"

"Do you know what's not fair?"

"What?"

"I'm the one who saw his dreams shattered today, shouldn't I be getting some comfort and pity, and being spoilt and pampered to no end instead of trying to reassure you?" Blaine mockingly pleaded, even managing a little smile even if his heart was broken, because he knew that was the way to get Sam out of that spiral of negative thoughts.

"Of course, I'm sorry, love, you're right" Sam immediately apologized, slightly embarrassed about letting himself go like that. "I'm so sorry it didn't work out. But it still can, can't it? They can still reach an agreement"

"Yes, they said it could only be a delay. But… do you mind if I cry a little?" Blaine asked, his voice shaking a bit at the end because of the tears he couldn't hold any longer.

"Oh, love" Sam exclaimed, embracing Blaine close to his chest again, willing to provide any strength and comfort the smaller boy should need. "Cry all you need, I'm here for you. I love you"

"It's just… it felt so real…" Blaine rested his head under Sam's chin, as the latter tenderly ran his hands up and down Blaine's back in a comforting pattern.

"And it was. And it will be again soon, I'm sure of that"

"You think so?"

"Of course!" Sam assured him, both because he knew that was what Blaine needed to hear and the moment and because he really believed it. "You think they are going to pass on the opportunity on being the ones that discovered the great Blaine Anderson?"

"You idiot" Blaine answered with a shaky chuckle.

"I may be an idiot, but it's the truth. Everything will work out in the end, my love. You deserve it"

"I so needed to hear that after today… I so needed you" Blaine explained with a sigh, letting the warmth Sam always provided spread across his chest.

"You should have called me right away, and I would have come instantly" Sam gently admonished him.

"That's why I didn't call you, you were working. Plus I didn't think I could talk to you without breaking down, so I didn't want to tell you through the phone. I needed to do it when you were able to hold me"

"All in all we haven't had the greatest week, have we?" Sam said with a sad smile, as the embrace broke and he lovingly ran his knuckles down Blaine's cheek.

"And the worst thing is…" Blaine started, but then stopped himself before finishing.

"What?" Sam encouraged him.

"It's stupid but… I have this feeling… as if something terrible was about to happen"

"Worse?"

"Much worse" Blaine answered, and there was so much fear in his eyes that Sam couldn't help but feel a little afraid too. "And I'm terrified, Sam"

"Come here, sweetheart" Sam said as he surrounded him with his arms once again and he rested his cheek on the top of Blaine's head.

They stayed that way for a couple of minutes until the sound of the doorbell made them jump and separate.

"That must be Sebastian" Blaine said as Sam stood up to go to the door. "I texted him to tell him he could come sooner if he wanted since I would be home anyway"

"I think the company will do you some good" Sam said with a smile before he opened the door and his mouth comically fell open like in a cartoon at seeing who was behind it. "Puck!"

"The door of the building was open, I hope you don't mind I came up" Puck apologized, trying to break the ice.

"What are you doing here?" Sam asked, still too shocked to feel the angry feeling of the day before.

"Hey, you always say the same" Puck joked, hoping to lighten the mood.

"How did you know where to find me?" Sam asked, opening the door a bit more widely as a sign for Puck to enter –not because he really wanted him to, but he didn't want to make a scene in the hallway.

"Well, looks like someone was very keen on me coming all the way here" Puck said with the ghost of a smile as he looked past Sam and at Blaine, still on the sofa.

"Do you have something to do with this?" Sam asked his boyfriend, who just shrugged his shoulders embarrassedly as an answer.

"You have a very stubborn… boyfriend, you know?" Puck said with almost admiration in his voice, making a conscious effort to show he respected their relationship with the right choice of words. "He came to the café to tell me a few home truths and… he got me thinking"

"Did he?"

"Don't ever let him go, Evans. He's a keeper" Puck said with an honest smile.

"Don't I know that?" Sam answered, turning to look at his boyfriend again and smiling fondly at him when he noticed he was blushing at Puck's appraisal.

"Look, I know I seriously offended you yesterday, and I'm very sorry" Puck said, finally getting down to business as he knew it couldn't be avoided any longer. "I know I have no excuse, but… it just took me by surprise, you know? I guess I'm not as open-minded as you are, I thought people were supposed to be straight or gay, and stick to that for the rest of their lives"

"It's not always like that" Sam contradicted him, trying not to roll his eyes because Puck really seemed to be trying.

"Yeah, I can see that" Puck answered with a chuckle, and then turned to the boy on the sofa. "I don't have anything against you, Blaine, I swear. But Sam… was not supposed to be into guys, that's all"

"And you've changed your mind?" Sam asked.

"When I saw those bruises on Blaine's face and he said they were product of homophobia… I knew I didn't want to be a part of that. Hell, I'm not a part of that. And now I've had the time to come to terms with it… I guess it doesn't make much of a difference, does it? Except that you being out of the market just leaves more chicks for me, right?"

"You'll never change, will you?" Sam said, thought he couldn't help laughing at his former friend's nonsense.

"And… I did consider Blaine one of the guys back in high school. I really did, we just… weren't that close, you know. But not because you were gay, it's just… You were always with Kurt or worrying about grades and classes and all that and I was such a good for nothing then…" Puck tried to reason with them. "We didn't have a lot in common, did we? But I gave you that shot glass like I did with the rest of the guys, remember?"

"Yeah, and if I remember correctly, mine said _Drink until she's cute_" Blaine added with a smile.

"That was pure chance! I gave them completely at random!" Puck defended himself.

"Alright I believe you" Blaine answered with a honest laugh.

"Then… maybe we could… I don't know, hang out from time to time now that we met again" Puck was almost pleading as he turned to his pal. "What do you say, Sam?"

Sam pursed his lips while he took a moment to think about it. Puck seemed genuinely sorry and repentant about their conversation from the day before. And Sam had to admit that it wasn't so crazy to think that someone from high school could be surprised about his relationship with a boy. And it felt so good to think he and Puck could regain their friendship… Yeah, Puck was not the most reliable or sensible person he knew, but he surely was fun to be around. It would be so easy to accept his apology… But then Sam remembered that he was not the only one who had been offended and he turned to look at his boyfriend. One look at his smiling face, though, and it was enough to know that Blaine totally supported him in this.

"Do you want to stay for dinner?" Blaine offered, asking Sam with his eyes if that was okay, to which Sam only slightly nodded.

"Really?" Puck asked, gladly surprised.

"Well, we don't have anything to eat, really, but we could order some pizza" Sam offered as he gently pushed Puck from the door and towards the living room area when the doorbell rang again. "Have a seat, I'll get the door"

"Ok" Puck happily replied as he sat on the armchair.

"Hey" Sam said with a smile when he saw Sebastian at the other side of the door.

"Hi" Sebastian reciprocated the smile. "Blaine texted me and said it was okay for me to come sooner"

"Yes, of course, come in. He's in the sofa" Sam nodded at him as he moved to let him in and pointed at Puck. "You remember Puck, don't you?"

"Yeah, I think so" Sebastian answered, moving to politely shake hands with him.

"I know you" Puck said, looking intently at him. "Aren't you the one who tried to blind Blaine with a salty slushee in high school?"

"No, I'm the one who tried to blind Kurt with a salty slushee, but Blaine got in the way" Sebastian answered in a joking tone, but the look he got from Blaine told him he didn't find it that funny. "Too soon?"

"No, too across the line" Blaine protested, feigning a judging look until Sebastian figured out he was just kidding and walked to sit next to him.

"Killer, I'm so sorry about your job" Sebastian said, completely honest this time, as he took the smaller boy in his arms and embraced him in a comforting way. "But it will be alright, I can feel it"

"Thanks, Seb" Blaine answered, trying very hard not to start crying again as he let himself be comforted by his friend.

"You lost your job, Blaine?" Puck intervened, looking at the small boy.

"Yeah" Blaine just answered, as it was still too painful for him to give any more details.

"They're looking for someone to work full-time at the café, maybe I could talk to them about you" Puck kindly offered, feeling sorry for the sadness in the boy's eyes. And after the way he had behaved, it was the least he could do, right?

"That would be great, Puck!" Blaine exclaimed, feeling excited and grateful at the same time. "It looks like such a nice place!"

"Now wait a minute, B" Sam intervened, making his way to the living room to sat on the coffee table in front of his boyfriend. "We said we'd talk about that"

"Sam, I need a job" Blaine reminded him, taking his hand in his to reinforce his words. "And this one is as good as any"

"It's not what you've been preparing yourself for all this time" Sam contradicted him with a remorseful tone.

"I'll survive" Blaine answered with a smile as he took Sam's hand to his lips and gently kissed his knuckles with the silent promise to talk about it later when they were alone if he wanted to.

"Great, so I'll talk to my manager tomorrow and see what I can do" Puck added, happy to be able to help. "And now, did someone mention pizza?"

"Yeah, about that… Seb, I'm sorry we are the most horrible hosts ever" Blaine apologized, a bit embarrassed about how the dinner had turned out to be. "But after what happened today… We promise to cook the next time"

"Oh, don't worry, darling, if that means I get to be invited again, I guess I can deal with some pizza" Sebastian answered, winking at him to let him know he was only joking.

"So pizza for four then, right?" Puck asked, taking his phone out of his pocket to make his order. A nice gesture towards his friend would be a nice complement to his apology. "It's on me, okay? As a… thank you, for putting up with me"

"You don't have to do it, Puck" Blaine answered. "We're happy to have you here"

"Yeah, but be careful, Puckerman" Sam couldn't stop himself from adding. "You're now surrounded by men who like other men"

"I think I'll survive" Puck answered, jokingly rolling his eyes at him.

"I'm guessing with that comment that I don't have any chances with you, then" Sebastian joked, winking at him in a jokingly seductive way. "What a shame, you are cute without that horrible mohawk haircut I remember"

"Hey!" Puck protested, feigning to be offended. "I'm cute with any haircut, thank you very much"

The other three laughed wholeheartedly at that and Puck finally made the call to the pizza place. Sam offered beers for everyone and the four of them sat in the living room as they waited, talking and joking and basically having a good time together. And when Sam's arm went around Blaine's shoulders to bring him closer to his chest –after all, he knew Blaine still needed some comfort, in spite of his pretence to be alright– and Puck didn't seem to be bothered by it even one bit, the blond knew he had regained a friend.

* * *

><p>AN: So what do you think? Will Blaine be right with his sense of foreboding? ;) You'll find out in the next chapter!


	9. Chapter 9

_As always..._

_**Me-me157: **Believe__ me, he will have to go through A LOT yet! But yeah, of course Sam is going to be there for him all the way... as long as Blaine lets him. And yes, I'm glad Puck and Sam are reconciled, I wanted to give a special friend to Sam too, like Blaine has Sebastian or Tina, do you know what I mean? Well, I hope you don't hate me after this chapter (you'll soon know why). Thank you so much, sweetie!_

**_**_Lovefordare: _**_**__awww, how sweet of you! I know, I want a boyfriend like Sam too! Hahaha, I knew someone would comment on the Puck-Sebastian thing... I'm sorry, I think it'll stay totally platonic ;) Oh, you will know about Blaine's feelings right away, don't worry. Thank you soooo much for always being there!__

**_StyxxandBethany: _**_Then I'm so totally honoured that you decided to give Blam a chance through my story! I think Blam is perfect and makes much more sense than any other ship in the show, but I guess it's only an opinion ;) Their lives still have to get so much worse before they get better, sorry! And we'll see about Sebastian! Thank you so much for reviewing every chapter! You're lovely!__  
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><p><em><strong>AN:**__ WARNING: Very very dramatic event in this chapter. Just so you're prepared. _

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><p><strong>CHAPTER 9<strong>

Sam looked at his boyfriend, sitting in front of him, as they both ate dinner at their kitchen table. He had been trying to make some light conversation for a while now, and even if Blaine was being polite, giving short answers and smiles whenever they were needed, it was clear his heart was not in it. Right then, as Sam watched him playing with his food absentmindedly instead of eating it, the blond could see his head was miles away. Like it had been a lot for the past three days, since he got attacked –the bruises and wounds were still very present on his face– and then his show was cancelled. He had been especially silent since he reluctantly agreed to report his aggressors –just for Sam– and, as he feared, the police had hardly cared about it. Not that Sam didn't understand his low mood, of course, but it didn't make him pain any less about his adored boyfriend.

"Hey" Sam said, playfully hitting Blaine's hand with his fork to get his attention.

"What?" Blaine said when he focused on his boyfriend again with a small embarrassed smile.

"You seemed to be so far away right now" Sam casually commented, not wanting to sound reproachful.

"I'm sorry, I was lost in thought" Blaine immediately apologized.

"About?"

"Nothing in particular. Just this and that" Blaine answered, shrugging his shoulders.

"Are you nervous about your first day of work tomorrow?" Sam asked. Puck, as promised, had talked to the owner of the café where he worked and she had agreed to meet him. Of course he had charmed her right away, and she had offered him to start working immediately.

"Not really. Helen already explained everything to me this morning when I went to sign the contract and Puck is going to be there too if I need some help, so…"

"I wish you didn't have to do it" Sam lamented for what felt like the hundredth time.

"Sam, we've already talked about that" Blaine patiently answered with a sigh, grabbing Sam's hand across the table in gratitude for all his worrying. "Right now we need to put our shoulders to the wheel until better times come. I know it will be worth it in the end. And besides, it's not that big a deal: it's a nice place, it's close to home and you're going to visit every now and then, right?"

"Don't you mean _all the time_?" Sam asked, trying to lighten the mood as he caressed Blaine's knuckles with his thumb.

"Well, not all the time, I don't want Helen to think she made a mistake betting for me even if I didn't have any experience as a waiter" Blaine answered in all honesty, because how unprofessional he would look if his boyfriend was constantly perching over the bar to be close to him? "And we don't want to make Puck look back for recommending me, right?"

"Sweetie, with the way you put your heart into everything that you do, the only thing Helen will regret will be not hiring you any sooner" Sam answered, because he knew Blaine like the back of his hand and he knew that even if it was not the job of his dreams, Blaine would give it his best.

"Ok, but let's not take advantage of her for being so nice and understanding. I mean, she didn't even ask for an interview before he gave me the job, and didn't even mention my bruises" Blaine explained, very aware of how bad and ugly his injuries looked four days after the attack.

"That's because she fell in love with you the moment she saw you"

"Sam!" Blaine reprimanded him with mocking horror. "She could be my mother!"

"I meant in a motherly kind of way" Sam hurried to explain, glad that Blaine was finally engaging into a conversation gladly. "You already have her around your little finger with your charm and your sweet smile, you know that, don't you?"

"All the more reason not to take advantage of it then, so you can't come to spend the afternoon there on my first day of work"

"Really?" Sam asked with a pout.

"Yeah, really" Blaine answered, chuckling at his fool of a boyfriend. "But you can come and pick me up afterwards, if you want" Blaine tried to sound casual, but Sam knew he still wasn't comfortable about being alone in the streets after dark and he, of course, was more than willing to help him on that.

"Try and stop me" Sam answered in a joking tone, pretending not to notice about Blaine's fear so as not to make an issue out of it as he got up and left his plates at the sink. "How about we leave the washing up for tomorrow for once and crash into the sofa like right now? It's not like you're eating anyway"

Blaine looked down at his plate, as if he was surprised himself to see it still so full. He half-smiled at his boyfriend's observant skills and got up too to put away his practically untouched food in a Tupperware so it wouldn't go to waste.

"And you're not going to scold me about it?" Blaine joked, smiling as he put his arms on each side of his boyfriend's waist, standing in front of him, and let the top of his head rest in the middle of the blond's chest, obviously craving for the contact.

"Just for once, I'll let you get away with it" Sam joked back, as he rubbed Blaine's arms up and down and noisily kissed his head. Blaine had been pensive and kind of sad for days now, the last thing he needed was for Sam to get into one of his protective/overwhelming moods that would only lead them to fight or for Blaine to push him away. "Now come on, let's cuddle up on the sofa, I'm kind of cold and I could use some body heat"

"Or you could put on a sweater" Blaine suggested, but Sam knew he was not serious by the way he picked up his hand and pulled him towards the living room.

"Mmm… I like my option better" Sam protested, letting go of Blaine's hand to put his arms around him from behind instead and gently pushed him with his own body towards the sofa.

"So do I" Blaine admitted with a gentle smile as his hands moved to run all along Sam's forearms.

That evening, as they snuggled quietly in front of the TV and Sam could sense the sadness in his boyfriend, both in his posture and his silence, Sam decided it would be nice to do something to cheer Blaine's spirits a little.

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><p>Blaine looked at the watch and sighed in relief: only half an hour to go. He didn't remember having been that tired in a long time, probably since NYADA. But after spending his entire shift of his first day of work as a waiter standing up, his feet were really killing him.<p>

Apart from that, he had to admit it hadn't been a bad day. Helen had remained close to him practically at all times, carefully explaining what he didn't know and giving useful advise here and then. And when she wasn't, Puck immediately replaced her, apparently having assigned himself as his mentor. The poor guy was obviously trying to rebond with Sam after their disastrous first encounter, and what a better way to do it than helping his boyfriend, acknowledging that way how on board he was with their relationship, after the initial surprise?

As Blaine finished washing up a few glasses in the sink under the bar, he felt his phone vibrating on his pocket. It probably was Sam saying he was on his way there, Blaine realized with a goofy smile.

"Hey, Puck" he called his friend, who was coming to him with a tray full of empty cups.

"Yep?" the other answered, stopping on his way out again to clean the recently vacated tables.

"I think I got a message. Do you think it would be okay if I checked my phone for a second?" Blaine asked, knowing Puck would know every little detail about their job after months working there.

"Of course you can check it, this is not high school!" Puck laughed as he friendly patted Blaine's back. "You obviously can't spend the day playing with your phone, but it's not a problem to read a message, don't worry"

With a grateful smile, Blaine took the phone out of his pocket and immediately realized it was from his boyfriend. Curious about what could he have to say only a few minutes before he was supposed to pick him up, he opened the message and read.

_Hi, sweetie. I'm terribly sorry but we had a major crisis at work and I'm stuck here for some more hours at least, so I won't be able to pick you up. So sorry! I'll make it up to you, I promise! Love you so much. xxx_

Trying not to feel too sad or disappointed –not at Sam, of course, it wasn't his fault he had to stay at work!–, he put the phone back in his pocket and took a dish cloth to clean the bar with it. But it must have shown in his face, because Puck immediately noticed the change in his mood.

"Something wrong?" Puck asked as he dried the glasses Blaine had just washed just so he could stay near the smaller boy for a little longer.

"Sam says he had to stay at work and he can't come and pick me up" Blaine answered, trying to sound relaxed and cool as he continued tidying up the bar.

"So? Even you two can stay away from each other for a couple of hours, right?" Puck asked with a lopsided grin because yeah, maybe he only had been around them for a couple of days, but that had been enough to see how much they needed each other.

"Yeah, of course" Blaine answered with a faked smile.

"You're still uncomfortable walking alone after dark, aren't you?" Puck asked, and Blaine was glad to hear no sound of judgment or mocking in his voice, only honest caring.

"I guess" Blaine finally confessed. After all, this was one of his boyfriend's closest friends again and had been nothing but great to him.

"Well, I can walk you home, our shifts finish at the same time, in half an hour, right?" Puck offered, and the action warmed Blaine's heart to no extent.

"No, Puck, thanks a lot, but you don't need…"

"Dude, you're my bro's sweetheart, I'm obliged to take care of you when he's not present, it's in the bro's code" Puck explained, and he seemed to seriously believe what he was saying even if Blaine laughed honestly at it. "The fact you're a boy doesn't change anything"

"You really don't need to do it" Blaine tried to refuse. "I have to get over this irrational fear"

"Well, you can work on that some other day, 'cause tonight I'm taking you home" Puck insisted, no leaving room for Blaine to say no.

"At least you'll stay for dinner, then"

"Finally! I thought you were never going to offer!" Puck answered while rolling his eyes as he got from behind the bar to go and clean some tables, leaving Blaine laughing to himself.

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><p>True to his word, half an hour later Puck accompanied Blaine home, not making a big fuss about it as they talked and joked about Blaine's first day at his new job. The curly-haired guy was glad for the company, not only on his way home but once there too, as Sam apparently would not be coming for a while yet and he didn't feel like being alone. He was contemplating calling Sebastian to hang out with them too –apparently Puck and him had a very similar sense of humor, and that's the kind of light conversation Blaine needed tonight– when he opened the door to his apartment to find it packed with people –his beautiful boyfriend amongst them.<p>

"What the…" Blaine exclaimed, a wide smile breaking into his lips at the sight of all of his closest friends there.

"Hey! I thought we were supposed to yell _surprise_!" Artie protested good-naturedly.

"It's not exactly a surprise party, Artie" Sam reminded him before his eyes turned to his still smiling partner.

"You liar!" Blaine mockingly protested as he came closer to his boyfriend and quickly fell into his arms, sighing as Sam's lips left a sweet kiss on the side of his neck.

"Well, I love you too!" Sam sarcastically replied, squeezing Blaine strongly before letting go of him so everybody could have his share of the small guy.

"What's all this?" he asked as Tina hurried to embrace him to.

"A surprise dinner" Sam proudly answered as Sebastian hugged Blaine too.

"It's not even my birthday"

"So? We can only have surprises for birthdays?"

"I don't know, but… I didn't do anything to deserve this" Blaine humbly explained, a little overwhelmed that all his friends were there without any obvious reason beyond making him feel loved and special and to cheer him up.

"Well, you must have done something good when all your friends are here at the first call" Sebastian reminded him, fondly rubbing his shoulder.

"But…"

"Ok, Blaine, don't freak out, it's not a party or anything" Sam felt the need to intervene, seeing that Blaine was getting a bit emotional at all the attention, and he put an arm around his shoulders to press him to his side. "I just decided to give all of our friends a call to have a casual and non-formal dinner, like the ones we have all the time. I just thought it would be fun to turn it into a surprise"

"Look at it this way: it's just a dinner with your best friends that you didn't know about, so it became a surprise" Mike added, glad to see that Blaine was finally starting to relax.

"Ok. Thank you all for coming" Blaine honestly told them, his beautiful smile returning to his face. "You guys are the best"

"Oh, we know that" Puck answered as he took off his jacket and pretty much threw it on the floor when he saw the jacket rack was too full.

"Pity you couldn't be a little tidy even if your life depended on it" Sam joked, picking up his friend's jacket and folding it to leave it on the back of a chair.

"Oh, I already have you to tidy up behind me, so…" Puck answered, and thankfully he was fast enough to avoid the playful punch Sam was throwing his way. "So what's for dinner this time? Pizza again?"

"No, it's Chinese today. Blaine would have surely cooked something for you if he had known you were coming, but me…" Sam apologized.

"Don't give me that, I already know you can do it when you really want it, remember?" Blaine mockingly admonished him, putting his arm around his boyfriend's waist so he would know he was only joking.

"Shit, I always forget" Sam answered good-naturedly before giving Blaine's lips a quick peck and moving to the kitchen to start getting the dinner ready with Mercedes and Mike, as the rest of them sat to the table to wait for them.

As they only needed to put the food into plates and trays it took them only a few minutes to get everything ready, and Sam hurried to sit down next to his boyfriend in the vacant chair at his side –not that he needed to hurry anyway, because their friends always let them sit together even if they always claimed there was no need for that–. Blaine turned to him with his brightest smile and grabbed Sam's chin to bring his face closer to his and capture his lips in a heartfelt kiss.

"Have I told you recently how much I love you?" Blaine reminded him in honest gratitude, looking intently into Sam's eyes.

"You constantly do, but feel free to continue doing it" Sam joked before reciprocating the kiss and caressing Blaine's thigh.

"Hey, have some respect for the singles in this table" Puck feigned to reprimand them as he started eating, eliciting a laugh from both of them even if they obeyed and separated. "Which now that I think about it, it's most of us"

"Yeah, what's wrong with us?" Artie asked. "We are adorable, after all"

"Well, I offered all my adorableness to Puck the other night, but he blatantly refused it" Sebastian cheekily answered.

"No, thanks, too tall for my taste" Puck rejected him good-naturedly. "Now if Mercedes would want…"

"Just leave me out of this" she protested with a chuckle. "I have enough going on in my life to add you of all people into the mix"

"Ok, maybe that's why we are all single, we are too demanding" Artie intervened, and Puck nodded enthusiastically.

"Yeah, that's why" Sam sarcastically replied and didn't see Puck's napkin coming his way until it was already on his face.

"So is really no one going to comment in the two newest additions to our little family?" Tina asked very seriously, immediately spoiling the fun and the light atmosphere they had created.

"Tina, we already talked about that while we waited for Blaine and Puck" Mike reminded his girlfriend in a warning tone. They had come to cheer Blaine up, not to argue with him. Besides, it was not up to her to decide who could be a part of Blaine and Sam's life and who couldn't.

"What's the big deal?" Blaine asked innocently, pretending not to notice the reproachful tone of Tina's question. "You already knew both of them"

"Yeah, and both of them were potential criminals in their days, if I remember correctly" Tina added.

"Tina!" Artie reprimanded her because, even if he wasn't going to trust Sebastian that easily either after all his high school misdeeds, the fact that Blaine and Sam had made their peace with him had to mean he had changed. Plus according to Sam, he had saved Blaine from a beating, so…

"Lucky for you we've grown up, then" Sebastian answered sarcastically, trying not to get offended. He was not that naïve, he knew the image Blaine's friends had of him because of his past and he would have to earn their trust slowly, as he had done with Sam. And he couldn't complain because, apart from Tina, no one had dared to say anything against him yet and were being nice enough towards him –out of respect for Blaine, he guessed.

"If you ever hurt Blainedays again…" Tina threatened the former warbler, but she couldn't finish her sentence before Blaine interrupted her.

"Tina, that's enough" Blaine unexpectedly admonished her even if he didn't need to raise his voice one bit for her to see how serious he was. "Sebastian and Puck are our friends, which let me tell you they've vastly earned, and your nasty comments are not appreciated"

"Don't worry, Sam already gave me that talk" Sebastian told Tina, not before sending a grateful smile to Blaine in gratitude for defending him but not wanting him to get at odds with his friend because of him.

"Yeah, and then he kept Blaine from getting hurt instead and it was all forgotten" Sam answered, still embarrassed and deeply ashamed about his previous lack of trust in him. "So if we could forget everything that happened when we were just stupid teenagers, I don't see why you can't"

"Alright, I'm sorry" Tina finally relented, if only because he hated for Blaine to get angry at her. "I was just trying to be protective of my friend"

"And I appreciate it" Blaine answered, softening immediately. "But there's nothing to protect me from, I promise you"

"Well, maybe we should protect you from her" Puck muttered, although loud enough from everyone to hear, and Tina gave him a murderer look until she couldn't help it anymore and laughed along with the rest of them.

The dinner, after the initial awkwardness, turned out to be a nice and joyful affair for everyone –even for Tina, once he accepted neither Sebastian nor Puck seemed to be that much of a threat–. So when they finished eating, they decided to move the reunion towards the living room, where they could be more comfortable, and play charades.

How loud could those damned friends of them, Sam wondered after a while as he looked over his boyfriend, perched against him with Sam's arm around his shoulder while all the action went around them. He was participating in the game, and he was smiling and laughing like the rest of them, but he was still quieter than usual.

"You alright?" Sam asked him with a loving smile, while Puck and Tina argued about whose fault it was they lost a point.

"Yeah" Blaine simply answered, equally smiling as Sam kissed his cheek, knowing his boyfriend would understand without any more need for words how he felt: grateful for orchestrating that funny night for him, content to have such an amazing group of friends, but still too frustrated and angry at the world to really enjoy it like he would have done only a week before.

"It will be alright, you know" Sam whispered to him, so only he would hear.

"Yeah, I know" Blaine answered with a wider smile that time as he gratefully rested his head on Sam's shoulder and wondered, not for the first time, if his boyfriend had the ability to read his mind.

It was only a couple of minutes later –in which Sebastian and Artie were surprisingly managing to really crush the other team–, Blaine's phone started to ring. One look at it and his face lightened up a bit at seeing it was his big brother calling.

"It's Cooper, he'll want to know how my first day at my job went" Blaine informed his boyfriend before giving him a quick peck on the lips and standing up to move a bit away from their noisy friends.

Sam turned his attention back to the game to watch as Tina feigned to pilot… something. Maybe it was a spaceship? Puck seemed to think that also as he kept reciting every science fiction movie he could remember. When the time went out, and their team hadn't guessed the movie yet, Tina argued it should have been obvious it was _X-men_.

"_X-men_?" Puck protested. "How the hell was that _X-men_?"

"Didn't you see the position of my fingers? I was doing that nerdy thing!" Tina responded.

"What thing?"

"That thing they do with their hands to greet each other"

"You mean the Vulcano salute?" Sam interrupted, deeply amused with their conversation.

"That's from _Star Trek_!" Puck practically yelled at her, outraged that someone couldn't tell one saga from the other. "And that was not even close to the Vulcano Salute! I thought you were doing someone with serious problems in their hands!"

"Ok, so maybe I mixed up the two movies, big deal. But you should have guessed it anyway, I was clearly driving a spaceship!"

"_X-men _doesn't even happen in space! And you pretend for us to win like that?"

Even if Puck and Tina were clearly in a serious dispute, all the others were laughing their asses off at the exchange. Sam, still clutching his stomach because it hurt with so much laughing, turned his gaze to Blaine, a few feet away from them, to check if he had heard any of it and was laughing too. But he wasn't. Even if Blaine had his back to him, Sam could notice all of Blaine's muscles were tensed, almost shaking even though he was standing so still, and he immediately worried, his smile disappearing in an instant. Something had happened, and his intuition told him it was something big. He hoped Cooper was okay.

Sam hurried to stand up, even as his friends continued playing, oblivious to whatever was happening, and almost ran to his boyfriend's side. He placed a hand on the shorter boy's back, but Blaine was so into the conversation that he didn't seem to notice.

"But how is she, is she ok?" he heard Blaine asking, his voice noticeably shaking.

Sam brought a hand to his face, his heart in his mouth even if he didn't have a clue of what was going on. But if a woman so important to Blaine to put him in this state of mind was hurt or ill and it was Cooper calling, it could only mean one thing: it was about their mother.

"Sweetie?" Sam mouthed in question, moving in front of him to be able to lock his eyes with Blaine, but the latter didn't answer, obviously anxious to get answers himself.

"Stop beating about the bush, Coop" Blaine hissed. "Just tell me already. How is she?"

Sam would always remember how he witnessed the exact moment when Blaine's heart broke into pieces, everything he was feeling clearly written in his face.

"No" he whispered as his hands started shaking so much that his phone fell between his fingers. Sam didn't have time to try and catch it before it reached the ground because Blaine's knees suddenly buckled and he rushed to put his arms around his boyfriend before he hit the ground as well. He was able to stop his fall, but not to hold him upright, and he let both of them sink into the ground slowly.

He strengthened the embrace around Blaine's body now they were sitting on the floor and let his boyfriend hide his face in his neck, his tears wetting his own skin but not really caring about it as heartbreaking sobs finally broke.

Everyone on the living room finally noticed what was happening when the sound of Blaine's crying filled the room, and they all stood up, surprised, and moved to the weeping couple on the floor of the kitchen.

"Sam?" Tina asked, but Sam didn't answer yet. Instead, he picked up Blaine's phone from the ground without letting go of him and checked if Cooper was still there, which he was.

"Cooper? It's Sam. Blaine can't talk at the moment… …Can you tell me what happened?… … Oh, Coop, I'm so sorry, I really am… If there is anything I can do… …Yeah, yeah, of course I'll take care of him, you don't even have to mention it…" Sam spoke, squeezing Blaine's body even more strongly to him as in confirmation of his promise to Cooper. "We'll be there as soon as we can… …I'm really sorry, Cooper. You take care too, please"

Nobody said a word until Sam spoke again.

"Oh, B" Sam said the moment he hung up the phone and placed it on the floor again, his free arm curling immediately around Blaine again. "I'm here, love. I've got you" Sam whispered in his ear, not even trying to comfort him with empty words like _I'm sorry_ or _it will be ok_, just wanting him to know he loved him and he was there for him.

"Tell me it's all a joke. That Cooper is just kidding me" Blaine finally spoke between sobs.

"No, babe, I'm afraid he isn't" Sam answered, his own voice breaking at his lover's pain. "I wish he was"

"Guys, what happened?" Sebastian intervened, not really wanting to bother them but needing to know what was so wrong with his friend.

"Blaine's mum had an accident" Sam started, noticing Blaine's shaking increasing at having to hear again the words that had broken his heart into a million pieces. "She… didn't make it"

A collective gasp went around the group for a second, hands going to faces and silent tears falling down cheeks, but they remained in silence, a silence only broken by Blaine's heart-wrenching sobs, muffled by Sam's neck as he held him tightly to him.

"We're so sorry, Blainedays" Tina immediately said, going to him to kiss the top of his head as he continued crying, totally heartbroken.

Nobody knew what to do, except for Sam. Sam held him for what felt like hours, holding Blaine's head lovingly against his shoulder and whispering reassurances in his ear, kissing the side of his neck every now and then to remind him that he loved him and would always be there for him. It felt like such an intimate moment that the rest of the gang felt it would be appropriate to give them some privacy.

"I'll check when the first flight back to Ohio is and I'll book a ticket" Artie announced, always the practical one, as he tried to help them in the only way he could think of.

"Make it two, Artie" Sam answered, with a grateful half-smile towards him, because he obviously wasn't going to let Blaine go alone in a time like that.

"We'll pack for you, ok?" Tina offered, knowing neither Blaine nor Sam would be up to such a mundane task for now, and Mike accompanied to her room to help her.

"And I'll start some coffee" Puck announced and Mercedes followed him into the kitchen, leaving only Sebastian next to the couple as everyone got into action.

Sebastian felt bad and horribly inadequate. He was not good with dealing with pain, he never knew how to act around people that were suffering. But this was Blaine. This was his best friend, his brother, the boy he loved above everyone else, and he had just lost his mother; no selfish awkwardness was going to keep him away from him. He knew Blaine needed Sam above everyone else at the moment, it was obvious by the fierce way he clung to him, but Sebastian was also there to show him his love and support, so he slowly knelt down behind Blaine and threw his arms around him, resting his head on the back of Blaine's neck as he shared a worried look with Sam.

"I'm so sorry, Killer" he whispered, and he knew he was doing the right thing when one of Blaine's hands found his and held it strongly.

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><p><em><strong>AN:** __Ok, so that was what the whole story was supposed to be based on from the beginning, though right now I'm feeling quite a bit guilty because of it. But well, what is done is done, and I promised a lot of drama when I started the sequel, so here it is! Sorry!_


	10. Chapter 10

_As always..._

_****_Guest: _****_I know, I just tricked you all into believeing everything was going to be alright, right? I'm horrible! :) He's going to have a very hard time with this (especially considering how complicated his situation with his mother was in the first place) but, as you say, he has a lot of people around him that loves him to no end - Sam above them all. Thank you soooo much! ;)__

**_Lovefordare: _**_I know, I was trying to achieve this horrible feeling that everything can change in an instance, so I pretended that everything was alright and then BAM! Drama! Yes, it's going to be pretty dramatic for some chapters to come. I hope you still enjoy them! Thank you sooooo much! :)_

_**Me-me157: **__Yes, they reported Blaine's aggressors, but as he suspected, the police couldn't care less about it... And of course their friends are going to be there for him in those difficults times, don't worry! Thank you so much, sweetheart! :)_

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><p><em><strong>AN:**__ WARNING: I'm very very sleepy (but I wanted to finish this today at all costs), so you will probably find a loooot more mistakes than usual. SORRY!_

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><p><strong>CHAPTER 10<strong>

It took Sam and the others a long while and an enormous amount of patience and comforting words to get Blaine calm enough so they could get him off the floor and move him to the sofa. Fortunately by then his heart wrenching sobs were starting to diminish, even if the shaking in his body was as present as ever.

After that, he simply sat on the sofa, tightly wrapped in Sam's arms, who hadn't moved from his side for even a second, with Tina at his other side holding his hand. Puck offered Blaine a coffee, but even before he could say anything Sam kindly refused it for him, arguing that the last thing he needed was something that would get him more nervous. Puck, seeing the logic of it, gave the coffee he had gotten ready to the others and prepared some warm milk for Blaine instead, that he gladly accepted. Drinking it, though, became a harder task than expected because of how much his hands were shaking, and Sam had to steady the cup for him, pretending to just wanting to hold his hand so as not to make a big fuss about it.

"Maybe he should… take something to help him relax" Artie suggested, not having missed the trembling of Blaine's hands, because even if Blaine was calmer than before, he was still in an obvious state of mind.

"Don't talk about me as if I was not here, please" Blaine spoke for the first time after the initial shock. Even at a time like this, the last thing Blaine wanted was for everyone to treat him as if he was going to break. Or worse, taking pity on him. After all, he had just lost his mother, a mother he hadn't talked to in years because of his stupid pride; he didn't deserve any compassion.

"I'm sorry, I didn't want to bother you" Artie immediately apologized; he didn't want to upset Blaine any further, he just had seemed to be in some kind of shock up until then.

"It's okay, Artie, we know you only wanted to help" Sam immediately reassured their friend, although he was feeling kind of relieved that Blaine seemed to be more alert and aware of their surroundings that a while ago. "Sweetie, do you want to take something?"

"No, I don't want to get sleepy or disconnected, and our flight it's in just a few hours" Blaine refused, and then snuggled closer to Sam, both for comfort and to hide himself for all the attention he was receiving. He knew his friends loved him and only wanted to help, but they were really overwhelming him at the moment.

Fortunately, Sam seemed to understand his boyfriend's feelings –didn't he always?– and knew he should be the one to provide him of that privacy and protection he seemed to be craving so much. He knew Blaine was not one to share his most inner feelings with anyone outside of him, and in a moment like that… He really needed the space.

"Guys, you should probably go" Sam kindly say, knowing their friends wouldn't get offended by his request, and that if they knew Blaine even just a little, they would understand. "I think what Blaine really needs right now it a bit of peace. Plus, we should try and get some rest, it's going to be a hard day tomorrow"

"I'm sorry, guys" Blaine mumbled, suddenly feeling embarrassed that they had had to see him in such a state and, on top of that, he was practically throwing them out of the apartment.

"Don't worry, boo" Tina immediately reassured him, running her hand along Blaine's arm in a comforting way. "Sam is right, now you both need your space. Have a safe trip tomorrow and… keep strong"

"Thanks, Tina" he answered, his eyes getting glassy again as he disentangled from Sam's arms for a second to embrace his friend.

Sebastian took Tina's place when she stood up and embraced Blaine strongly to him, wanting him to know how sorry he was and how much he could feel his pain.

"You know where to find us" Sebastian reminded him.

"I know, Seb"

"Then don't hesitate to reach for us if you need us" Sebastian gently added, knowing how Blaine tended to close on himself when he was not feeling well, and he wanted him to know that he was going to be there for him, more than willing to do anything that could help him. "I love you, Killer" he whispered, both for Blaine's and his own sake –because it was very difficult to see someone you loved so dearly in so much pain and not be able to do anything about it.

"I love you too" Blaine answered gratefully, knowing Sam would understand what he meant.

The rest of them also gave Blaine all their love and promised to call him and text him the next day so he would know they were thinking of him. Sam accompanied them to the door and also thanked them for their support, but before he closed the door, Sebastian surprised him embracing him quite strongly too.

"Be strong you too, Sam" he said, understanding that the difficult moments ahead for Blaine were also going to have quite an impact on his doting boyfriend.

"Thanks, Seb" Sam answered, honestly grateful at Sebastian's understanding and support.

"Will you take care of him?" Sebastian asked, almost pleadingly.

"Of course I will" Sam assured him while friendly squeezing his shoulder and, with a last sad smile, Sam closed the door to give his whole attention to the whole person whose world had just crashed with only one phone call.

Sam walked back to the sofa and wordlessly sat at Blaine's side again and took him in his arms to have him rest against his chest. Of course as soon as Blaine felt himself wrapped in those arms that were his biggest source of comfort and strength, his pretence crumbled. He buried his face in Sam's chest and heart wrenching sobs broke from his chest again, his upper body shaking with pain and sadness.

"I love you so much" Sam reminded him with a long kiss to the top of his head as his hands ran up and down Blaine's back in an attempt of comfort.

"I can't..." Blaine tried to talk, but neither his voice nor his brain would work for him to make a coherent sentence. He didn't even know what he wanted to say: he just felt like he couldn't function.

"I know, I know" Sam answered, understanding Blaine's feelings more than himself by the way the shorter boy clung to him, and he gently carded his fingers through the curls on the back of Blaine's neck. "But I'm here for you. And we'll make it through this, ok?"

"You promise?" Blaine asked, desperate for a reassurance that everything would be alright, even if he didn't believe it.

"I promise" Sam answered without the slightest hesitation, because he would invest all his energy and time in making sure that Blaine would eventually overcome his grief and be happy again, even if that was the last thing he did.

After a good while in which the only movement in the room were Sam's hands tracing comforting patterns along Blaine's body, Blaine eventually stopped crying, if only because there were no more tears left in him. His face left its hiding place in Sam's chest, though he kept his head resting in Sam's shoulder, still not ready to move out from his adoring embrace.

"Maybe we should go to bed" Sam offered after some time, feeling that now that Blaine seemed to be calmer maybe he could get him to function again.

"I don't think I'm going to manage to sleep tonight" Blaine answered in a resigned voice.

"Yeah, I figured that much" Sam answered, comprehensively. "But we should still move to bed to be more comfortable. Even if we can't rest our minds, at least we should rest our bodies. You had a hard day of work anyway, so…"

"Was it really today? Suddenly it feels so far away…"

"Do you want to tell me about how it went? Maybe it will ease your mind a little"

"No, it feels so banal now that she's…" Blaine tried to explain before his voice broke and his eyes filled with tears again.

"I know, I know" Sam kissed his forehead as he tried to stop him from having another break down. "I'm sorry I asked"

"Don't be, love. I know you're only trying to help me" Blaine put his boyfriend's mind at ease, because he knew Sam only had his best interest at heart.

"I don't seem to be making a good job out of it, though" Sam lamented, and for a second Blaine put his own pain aside to reassure his boyfriend that he was being as perfect as ever and that he wouldn't change a thing about him for anything.

"What are you talking about? If it weren't for you right now, holding me like this, I don't know how…" Blaine assured him, even if he couldn't even finish his sentence.

"Well, you don't have to find out, I'll hold you for as long as you need it" Sam promised, embracing him strongly again as he kissed the side of his neck.

"I know I don't have the right to ask you this, but… Don't ever leave me, please" Blaine begged as he took Sam's hand and entwined their fingers together.

"I won't ever leave you, Blaine. I promise" Sam was quick to answer, squeezing Blaine's hand. "And you can ask anything out of me, I'm your boyfriend after all! And I won't hesitate to give it to you if it's in my power"

"I love you so much" Blaine answered, feeling guilty that he could feel so loved and protected when he should only be feeling sorrow.

"I love you too" Sam answered, kissing the top of Blaine's head just once more before letting go of him. "And now let's get you into bed. We need as much rest as we can get"

"Ok" Blaine finally relented with a resigned sigh.

"You get going and get ready for bed, I'll call my parents and be with you in a second"

"It's so late, Sam, why don't you wait until tomorrow? You might wake them up"

"It doesn't matter, Blaine, don't worry, this is too important. They'll want to know"

"Ok, if you're sure"

"I'll be there in a minute, love" Sam promised as he stood up and pulled Blaine's hand to get him on his feet also.

"Don't be long" Blaine begged of him, and Sam could tell how scared of being alone with his feelings he was.

"I won't" he assured him as he bent his face down to place a quick but loving kiss on Blaine's lips.

Sam watched Blaine go to their bedroom with a slow pace, the whole weight of the world apparently on his shoulders, and his heart broke at the image. With a heavy heart, Sam grabbed his phone from the coffee table and made his way into the kitchen, to get more distance between him and his boyfriend to keep Blaine from hearing the conversation.

"Sam?" his mother's slurred voice immediately answered.

"Hi, mom. Did I wake you?" Sam asked, trying to delay the inevitable moment of sharing the bad news with his mother.

"It's alright. But why are you calling this late? Is there something wrong?" Mary asked, immediately worried about her son's late call.

"Actually there is. Blaine's mother was in a car accident today" Sam answered in a rush, fearing that if he stopped, he would never be able to finish.

"And how is she?" she asked, her heart full of fear as she noticed the sorrow in her son's voice.

"She… didn't make it" Sam said while closing the kitchen's door. The last thing Blaine needed was to hear those damned words again.

"Oh my God" Mary exclaimed, and Sam could hear his father at her side asking what was wrong. "Oh my God, Sam, I can't believe it. How is Blaine?"

"He's devastated. I mean… he's not in shock or anything, he's talking and crying and all that but… his heart is so broken, mom" Sam said, his own voice breaking for a second now that Blaine couldn't hear him and he didn't need to be strong for him.

"Sam, calm down, sweetheart. Is he there with you?"

"No, he's getting ready for bed"

"Then let it all out with me, honey. I'm here for you" she sounded so loving and reassuring that Sam couldn't help it anymore and finally broke down in tears.

"How can he get over this? And why does he even have to? It's not fair" he lamented, his voice shaken with sobs.

"I know, sweetheart. Sometimes life is very unfair with the people who less deserve it"

"He's like the kindest person I've ever met, he only deserves to be happy"

"But Sam, I know he's grieving right now, but he will get over this with time" Mary reminded him. "He's a strong young man, and stubborn. He's not going to let this destroy him"

"But this is… you know how complicated the situation with his mother was. And I know he's going to feel so guilty about this. He's never going to forgive himself for these last four years in which he lost all contact with her" Sam explained, admitting his greatest fear about how Blaine was going to cope with the whole situation.

"Then you have to make him understand it's not his fault. He trusts you, he'll believe it eventually, even if you have to insist a lot until he does" Mary wisely said.

"I will do whatever it takes" Sam said, sighing deeply as he took control of his emotions thanks to his mother's words.

"I know you will, son" She answered, obviously proud of how much her son had matured over the years. "Are you alright now?"

"Yeah, mom, thank you"

"Then now you need to go to Blaine. Don't leave him alone, he needs you so much right now"

"I want to help him, mom, but I don't know how" Sam confessed, because he felt so lost…

"But you're already helping him, son. You're so kindhearted too… And Blaine loves you so much, the only thing he needs is for you to be by his side in a time like this"

"Then I won't move from his side until I'm sure he's a 100% better. Or never… I'll never move from his side again" Sam lightly joked.

"I'm travelling to Ohio as soon as I can. If your father can have a couple of days off work we'll leave the kids with Sarah and Michael and we'll be there tomorrow. And if not, I'll go on my own. But I need to be there for Blaine too" Mary promised, and Sam doubted he had ever felt so glad to have a mother like that.

"Thanks, mom. You guys are the best" he honestly thanked her. "Blaine will be so glad to see you"

"Tell him I love him, dear. And I love you too"

"I love you too, mom. See you tomorrow"

Sam pressed the red button on his phone and took a moment to get his feelings completely under control. He sighed as deeply as he could and he carefully dried his eyes and the remains of tears on his cheeks so Blaine wouldn't know he had been crying. He now needed to be stronger than ever to keep Blaine from falling into a place where he couldn't reach him. His boyfriend's welfare depended very much on him, and he was not going to let him down.

When he entered their bedroom, he found Blaine just sitting on the bed, unmoving, gazing into the distance. He hadn't even started to undress to get into bed, and for a moment Sam felt eternally grateful that their friends had already packed for them so he wouldn't have to worry about that on top of everything and he could devote himself completely to his beloved partner. So without even mentioning it, Sam knelt in front of him and started undressing him, because at least that was an easy and tangible way to take care of him.

"My mother wants me to tell she loves you very much" Sam explained, even if it was only to fill that oppressing silence, as he carefully lifted one of Blaine's feet, then the other, to remove his shoes. "She and dad will try and come to Ohio with us"

"No, they don't need to" Blaine immediately objected, just as Sam was expecting him to.

"Of course they do, sweetheart" Sam continued as he lovingly lifted Blaine's arms to take off his sweater. "We're a family, remember? They want to be at your side when you need them"

"I know, but… the kids…" Blaine insisted. The fact that he was grieving didn't mean that the world would stop turning, and the last thing Blaine wanted was to cause Sam's family any trouble.

"They'll be alright with the neighbors for a couple of days, don't worry" Sam reassured him as he pulled him on his feet to peal his skinny jeans from him with the most loving care. "Aren't you the one to always tell me they're not little kids anymore?"

"It will be good to see them, though" Blaine finally admitted, letting himself be manhandled by the person who he knew loved him the most in the world.

"That's what I wanted to hear" Sam answered with a smile, and he kissed Blaine's forehead before getting him to sit down again as he stripped to his underwear himself.

"They'll finally get to know Cooper" Blaine suddenly said, and he would have been so happy about that in a different situation. "I wish it had been under some different circumstances"

"Yeah, I know" Sam said with a sad smile as he finally lay down and brought Blaine's upper body to his chest to rest there under the protective weight of Sam's arms holding him strongly.

None of them said anything else for a while, and it was a while later that Sam felt some cold wetness on his chest that told him Blaine was silently shedding some bitter tears on him. Knowing no words would be able to comfort him, Sam started humming a soft melody he remembered from his childhood while he caressed Blaine's curls with the tip of his fingers, and he didn't stop until Blaine's light breathing told him he had fallen asleep more than hour later.

* * *

><p>Sam looked worriedly at his boyfriend on the taxi cab driving them to the Anderson's mansion from the airport. Although he was much more serene than the night before, he looked so fragile and small that anyone would think he was going to break any moment. He looked terrible: he had the biggest bags under his eyes and his gaze looked almost empty. If you added the still very much present injuries in his face from the attack of only five days ago –even if it felt like a lifetime–, he was pretty much the image of misery.<p>

When the car turned the corner of their street –that Sam remembered so well from the countless evenings spent there with his best friend back in high school–, Sam noticed Blaine starting to shake again. He had been doing that a lot since last night, still unable to control the depth of his emotions, but this time the shaking seemed to be so much worse, so Sam ended putting his hand on Blaine's thigh to try and stop it.

"He's not going to want me there" Blaine talked without being asked first for the first time since they got up, as if Sam's hand on his leg had given him permission to do so, and Sam immediately understood that he was terrified about his father's welcome after everything that had happened between them more than four years ago.

"You don't know that" Sam tried to calm him down, moving his hand to pick Blaine's and entwine their fingers together for support.

But Blaine didn't say anything else –though his shaking didn't diminish one bit– while the car took the final feet until the house's front garden. Sam paid for the ride and had to pull Blaine's hand to get him to move out of the car and up the front steps.

"It's going to be okay" Sam promised as he stood in front of him to look right into his eyes. Blaine nodded, implicitly trusting his boyfriend even if he wasn't so sure about it, and loudly sighed, trying to calm down his nerves, as Sam rang the bell.

Luckily for them, Cooper had already arrived from Los Angeles and he was the one to open the door for them.

"Squirt" Cooper whispered brokenly as both brothers fell in each other's arms and started sobbing in unison.

Sam silently stepped aside a couple of steps, giving the siblings a little privacy. As much as he had supported and tried to comfort Blaine since they had found out about his mother's passing, only Cooper knew and really understood what Blaine was feeling. Maybe he could help Blaine deal with his sorrow better than he could.

"I'm so glad you're here" Cooper said once they were able to let go and calm down a little, although his hands remained on Blaine's shoulders, his role as the boy's big brother and protector kicking in immediately.

"I came as soon as I could. I was lucky Sam wouldn't even hear about not coming with me" Blaine explained, sending his boyfriend a tender glaze.

"Of course, Sam, hi" Cooper finally acknowledged Sam and gave him a quick hug. "I'm sorry I ignored you, that was rude of me"

"Don't be silly, Coop" Sam quickly dismissed his apology. "How are you doing?"

"Well, I don't really know. Trying to come to terms with it, I guess" Cooper explained with a sad smile.

"How is dad?" Blaine intervened.

"He's… doing well, I guess, given the circumstances. But it could all be a façade, you know how he is"

"Yeah, I know" Blaine answered, more bitterly that he had intended.

"Look at your face" Cooper lamented, gently running his thumb along the still present bruise on Blaine's upper cheek. "As if you didn't have enough to deal with…" Cooper's voice broke out of pity for his brother, who he knew would be tormenting himself for the rest of his life that he hadn't been able to mend his relationship with his mother, and Blaine quickly put his arms around him again in appreciation.

"Coop, I love you so much" Blaine told him, gladder than ever to still be able to count on his brother, now that their situation was even more complicated than ever.

"I love you too, squirt" Cooper answered, sighing deeply to put his emotions under control and squeezing his little brother strongly to him before letting go of him. "Why don't you both come in and get comfortable? I guess you must be tired. The funeral won't be until tomorrow anyway"

"We…" Blaine started, but then seemed to hesitate.

"What's wrong?" Cooper asked, worried.

"We were thinking that maybe it would be better if we got a room in the hotel. Sam's parents are going to be there too when they arrive from Kentucky anyway, so…"

"What? Why?" Cooper asked, surprised.

"I don't know if we will be welcome here" Blaine confessed. "You know what happened the last time"

"Blaine, it's been years since then" Cooper contradicted him, bringing his hand to Blaine's shoulder to squeeze it comfortingly. "And this is a difficult moment, of course you'll be welcome. We need to be together, as a family"

"Do you think he will want to see me?" Blaine asked in such a little voice that it reminded Cooper when they were younger, and Blaine would come to him whenever he was scared about anything.

"Well, I'm sure…" Cooper tried to reason with him, until a deep voice interrupted them.

"Blaine" Don Anderson appeared down the stairs and walked towards them in his usual confident and scary demeanor.

"Hello, dad" Blaine answered, trembling, and Sam hurried to rest his hand on the small of his boyfriend's back to show him his support, as they finally entered the house and Cooper closed the door behind them.

"You came" Mr. Anderson stated the obvious, as if he was surprised at his son's presence.

"Of course I came. Did you think I wasn't going to come to my mother's funeral?" Blaine answered, his voice sounding much stronger than a moment before, and Sam understood that Blaine didn't want his father to see how much he intimated him.

"Well, you didn't seem to mind about her all this time anyway" Don sarcastically replied.

"What?" Blaine asked, not really sure he wanted to know the answer.

"Did you even care about her or… you just came because that's what you are supposed to do?"

"Are you seriously asking me that?" Blaine asked, astounded.

"We haven't heard from you for years" Don explained, and there was so much coldness in his voice that Sam suddenly understood completely how rejected and unloved Blaine felt by the man who was supposed to love him more than anyone.

"I know. From the exact moment when you threw me out and told me not to ever come back, remember?" Blaine asked, his inner strength and survival instinct that made him who he was making an apparition to put the pain aside for a moment.

"I recall telling you to not come back until… this kind of behavior" Mr. Anderson bitterly said, pointing at Sam as if he was clearly disgusted with his presence, "was over"

"Well, that's the same thing" Blaine answered, proudly, daring him to say something about his love for Sam, and entwined his fingers with the blond's both to prove his point and to get strength from him.

"So you chose that over your own family" Don went on.

"You gave me no choice"

"Over your own mother"

"Leave my mother out of this!" Blaine suddenly shouted, angrier that neither Sam nor Cooper had ever seen him. "Don't use her against me to try and hurt me!"

"Dad, cut it out right now, Blaine doesn't deserve this" Cooper warned him, willing to defend his brother to the last consequence.

"Doesn't deserve what, to have the truth thrown at his face? If he was brave enough to go against his whole family's wishes and forget about them, I guess he now can take a few home truths, can he?"

"Not my whole family" Blaine reminded him, proudly looking at his brother. "Cooper never tried to change me and accepted me for who I was"

"A disgrace to your family's name?" Don sarcastically added, and Blaine winced at his father's words as if they had physically hurt him.

"Okay, that's enough, sir" Sam suddenly intervened, putting himself between that man he was growing to hate so much and his adored boyfriend, unable to keep silently watching such a scene.

"You… stay out of this" Blaine's father ordered in a threatening voice, and Sam could feel how much that man had wanted to insult him.

"I won't stay out of this while you hurt my boyfriend like that" Sam answered, sounding almost like he was threatening him.

"Your boyfriend? That's funny. You seem familiar, but you're not the same one he dared to bring home once, are you?"

"No, I'm not. But I've been at his side since even before that" Sam answered with a hint of pride in his voice that not even Blaine's father could erase. "We were best friends at high school, I've been in this house hundreds of times. I guess you weren't around enough to remember me, right?"

"And we've been together for the last eight months" Blaine added, turning his gaze towards his boyfriend for a second to smile gratefully at him.

"I'll need help with that, is that a lot in your world?" Mr. Anderson asked, his voice full of sarcasm again. "I heard you queers can be quite promiscuous"

"I don't like what you're implying about Blaine, sir" Sam responded, taking a step towards the older man but stopping when Blaine's hand curled around his biceps to stop him.

"And what are those bruises on your face?" Don asked his son, expecting him to get embarrassed about it, but Blaine only lifted his face higher before answering.

"Those were given by some fucking homophobes, just like you" Blaine spat at his father.

"You mean you were beaten? Again?" his dad asked him, and for a split second Blaine could have sworn he had seen him some fear for him in his father's eyes, some remembrance of the time he had been beaten halfway to death when he was just fifteen. But it was gone as quickly as it had come, only to be replaced by anger and repulsion again. "You will never learn, will you? Or was it him?" he asked, pointing at Sam with a movement of his head. "He looks strong enough to do them"

"What? You think I'd hit him?" Sam couldn't decide if he was more surprised or angry that someone could think he would be able to hurt the person he loved the most in the world.

"Why not? I'm starting to think he likes it" Don added, the fact he could talk like that about his perfect son infuriating Sam to the point he was not thinking clearly as he took another step towards the man.

Blaine, seeing Sam getting angry beyond himself, reinforced his grip on the blond's biceps and guided him towards the door before he could do something he would regret.

"We shouldn't have come" Blaine lamented with a last look full of disappointment and regret at his father.

"No, you shouldn't have" they heard Mr. Anderson said just before Blaine closed the door behind them.

Once outside, Blaine let himself fall on the top step of the little staircase and brought his knees as close to his body as possible to bury his face on them, breathing deeply as if trying to stop himself from another breakdown.

"Blaine?" Sam tried, kneeling in front of him to lay his hands on his boyfriend's knees, doing a big effort to swallow his anger to be able to help him.

"I knew this was going to happen. I just knew it" Blaine said, lifting his face to look at his boyfriend, and there was so much pain and sorrow in his eyes that Sam felt a stab of pain in his heart. "I don't know how I let myself be tricked into thinking he could change"

"I guess you were only hoping" Sam said with a shrug of his shoulders.

"I am so stupid" Blaine lamented, bringing a hand to his face to hide behind it.

"Don't say that" Sam asked of him as he moved to sit by his side and put an arm around his shoulders. "You just have such a kind heart that you find it difficult to believe when other people don't. Especially when it's your own father"

"Is it wicked that I don't feel him as family anymore?" Blaine asked in a whisper, almost afraid to hear the answer.

"No, love. Families don't throw you out of their lives because of who you are" Sam answered, both to comfort his boyfriend and because he really believed it.

"I've only got Cooper now" Blaine's voice broke as the tears that had been threatening to spill finally fell down his cheeks and he furiously wiped them with shaking fingers. Since he received the terrible news the night before, he felt as if he wasn't in control of his own emotions, and he hated it.

"No, Blaine. You've got me too. We are a family now, you know" Sam reminded him, not offended at all because he perfectly knew what his boyfriend meant.

"You're right, I'm sorry" Blaine apologized immediately, hooking his arm with Sam's to ask for his forgiveness. "I love you so much. You know that, don't you?"

"Of course I know, you silly" Sam answered with a smile, resting his hand on top of Blaine's.

"You're not just my family. You're my whole world" Blaine honestly said, putting his head on Sam's shoulder.

"No, Blaine" Sam immediately stopped him. "As flattered as I am, there's a bunch of people in your world who loves you as much as I do. Well, not as much, obviously, but a lot nonetheless" Sam dared to joke, hoping to lighten the atmosphere even if it was just a little. "There is Cooper, for starters, who would kill anyone who dared to hurt you. And you know my parents adore you and think of you as another son. And don't even get me started about Steve and Stacey! They love you more than they love me, especially Stacey! And do I need to remind you of how deep Sebastian feels about you? And Tina… I mean, come on, she would gladly beat the crap out of anyone who so much as looked at you the wrong way… And Puck, Mike, Artie, Mercedes… Even your boss adores you, and you've known her for like a day"

"Ok, ok, I get it" Blaine stopped him with a chuckle, which to Sam's ears sounded like celestial music after everything they had had to live for the last hours. "Thank you for making me see I'm not alone"

"You will never be alone, Blaine. I'll make sure of that" Sam promised, and Blaine didn't have the slightest doubt about that.

"So given your parents love me so much… do you think they will be ok with taking us in for the night at the hotel?"

"To be honest, I think they will be relieved. They were so sorry to hear what had happened and I bet they can't wait to spoil you and pester you until you can't take it no more"

The sound of the house's door opening put them on alert and both tensed for a second until they turned around and could see it was only Cooper coming to them.

"Blaine, I'm so sorry" Cooper apologized for insisting him to enter as soon as he went down the few stairs on which his brother was sitting and came to stand in front of him. "I never thought…"

"It's okay, Cooper. I guess I was expecting it" Blaine immediately dismissed the apology.

"I'm thinking about going to the hotel with you two" Cooper suggested. "I don't feel like staying under the same roof than him at the moment"

"Don't, Coop, please" Blaine said, taking his brother's hand in his free one. "I know it's a lot to ask, but can you stay here with him? After all, he's just lost his wife and you're all he has now, I don't want him to be alone today"

"He doesn't deserve your sympathy" Cooper answered, marveled, not for the first time, about how compassionate his little brother could be.

"I know" Blaine admitted, but he couldn't help it.

"Ok, I'll stay with him" Cooper promised his brother. "But call me if you need me or whatever"

"You too, Coop" Blaine answered as he stood up to embrace his big brother. "I love you"

"I love you too, Squirt" Cooper answered in a shaky voice before letting go of his little brother.

"Take care, Coop" Sam said, also embracing the older man. "We'll see you tomorrow at the funeral"

"Try and get some rest" Cooper suggested as he watched the couple go, Sam's arm immediately going around Blaine's waist as they walked, and he thanked the heavens that at least Blaine had someone that loved him so dearly in a time like this.


End file.
